Love, War, and Sacrifice: A Rio Fanfic
by Leo the Hyacinth
Summary: Sequel to the hit animated film, Rio. Welcome back to the party! A brand new adventure awaits Blu and his friends, with a twist, of course. Follow their lives in Rio after the movie, with drama, murder, conspiracy, dilemma, and one bird giving everything to save Rio. Full description on my profile! Rated T: violence/descriptive action/romance/some adult themes. Chapter 23 now up!
1. Chapter 1: Where We Left Off

Chapter 1

Ask any human, or animal of the forest, and they're bound to tell you that miracles really do happen in Rio. Both will tell you about the friendly people, the beautiful scenery, and the diverse ecosystem of plants and animals that surround the city. If you ask the animals, however, they will tell you even more. They will explain how one day, the normalcy of Rio was changed forever, when a bird by the name of Blu, and his owner Linda, traveled to Rio in order for Blu, a Blue Macaw, to mate with the only known female Blue Macaw left, Jewel, to save their species. They'll go on to tell you about the journey they endeavored, from escaping from the hands of smugglers, to defeating an evil Cockatoo named Nigel. They may even tell you about how Linda falls in love with an ornithologist named Tulio, although the animals of the forest tend to stay out of the humans' business.

What matters most to them, however, is what they say when asked, "What happened to Blu and Jewel?" They will tell you a story of true compassion, where Blu dove from a plane, without the ability to fly, to be with Jewel one last time before they both died. (Jewel's wing was broken, rendering her flightless.) Through a miracle, they say, Jewel kissed Blu, creating in his heart a feeling that was so overwhelming that he instantly gained the ability to fly, in order to save the one he cared about. Blu and Jewel returned to Linda and Tulio, who then built a sanctuary to protect the animals of the forest from smugglers. They adopted an orphan boy named Fernando, who helped them find the birds again. Blu and Jewel went on to have three children, named Ramon, Bruno, and Gabriela. Once Jewel's wing healed, she and Blu were released into the sanctuary to live their lives as birds of the wild. Some eyewitnesses claim to have seen the group of friends flying over Rio, with the humans and Luiz, the bulldog, following on hang gliders. From there, no one has said much about their lives since the incident.

* * *

Digressing, the lives of Blu, Jewel, and all of their friends continued after they appeared to ride off into the sunset. Of course, it was getting late, and the children would have to be put to bed.

"Um," Blu broke the silence of the group as they flew through the air, "shouldn't the kids be sleeping by now? I've read that the average baby requires somewhere in the vicinity of 10 to 13 hours of sleep."

"Oh lighten up," Jewel replied, smiling. "They're having fun! But you're right; they should be put to bed soon. After all, tomorrow's the big day!"

"Um, what big day would that be?" Blu said as he stared at Jewel, puzzled.

"I haven't had a full day of flying since, since…"

Jewel's voice trailed off as her big baby blue eyes looked away from Blu, her face blushed, and a small tear could be seen running down her neck.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Blu said as he stopped with Jewel the kids, as they hovered in mid air. Nico, Pedro, and Rafael stopped moments later after they realized Blu and Jewel had stopped. "Since what?"

"…Since the day you saved my life," Jewel finally added as she tried to put a smile on her face, but hiding it in a way from Blu.

"Well," Blu stuttered as he stared at his partner, "Well, I mean…" He simply couldn't put his words together. He was truly a sucker for Jewel's perplexing bright blue eyes and perfect body. Images of the first time they ever met flashed through his mind, and he became rather weak, thrown off his feet the same way he was at that moment, which seemed like an eternity ago. Contrary to him, it was only a few weeks.

"And this," Jewel said as she got closer to Blu, "is why I love you, pet."

Blu realized her tease but had no time to say anything philosophical, as she leaned in and kissed him, unexpectedly, in full view of every other bird there, including their kids.

"Ew!" the three kids yelled in unison.

"Yep," Rafael proclaimed as he, Nico, and Pedro stared awkwardly at them. "That's my boy." He proceeded to laugh.

"Never thought it could happen," Nico said to Rafael, "could you?"

"Well I figured," Rafael replied, "it was only a matter of time. It's not like they could've found anyone else right?" He laughed again. "Hey guys, it's been great and all, but I should probably get going. Eva will be all up in my grill if I stay out here any longer. All my kids, they're so pesky. We had 'em tested, you know. They got some kind of disorder."

"They sick or somethin'?" Nico asked.

"It's, um," Rafael stammered. "It's…uh…ah for crying out loud! I can't believe that I forgot what it's called! I'll get back to you on it tomorrow. But anyways, today's been great boys! Have a good one!"

"Peace, bro!" Pedro said as Rafael saluted them and flew downwards into the woods as the sun began to fall behind the mountains. It was time for bed for the children.

* * *

Meanwhile, Blu and Jewel had just finished their passionate kiss.

"You know," Blu said looking into Jewel's eyes, "birds don't see well in the dark, so it might be best if we—

"—you think way too much," Jewel butted in. "Let's go kiddos!"

"I'm tired!" Ramon exclaimed.

"Same here!" Gabriela followed.

"All this flying is too much," Bruno said with them.

The kids followed Blu and Jewel back down into the forest, and they located their tree, a tall Manduvi Tree near the eastern end of the sanctuary. They landed at the tree and made their way inside the large hole that it contained.

"Daddy!" Bruno yelled loudly. "Tuck me in first!"

"Now, now," Jewel said with assurance, "he'll get you all tucked in, just wait your turn."

"But he loves me more!" Gabriela yelled at Bruno.

"Wrong!" Ramon added.

"You're both wrong!" Bruno said. A jumble of screaming ensued between the three kids. Jewel was in no mood to deal with disobedient children.

"He won't tuck any of you in if you keep arguing!" Jewel threw out with a loud rumble. Blu looked the other way like nothing happened.

Awkward, Blu thought.

The kids stopped talking and looked at Jewel with pure guilt.

"We're sorry, mommy," they said in unison.

"Oh it's okay," Jewel said in an empathetic childlike voice. "Goodnight, my angels."

Jewel kissed all three of them as she nestled down on the other side of the nest.

"Goodnight, guys," Blu said as he kissed all three of them. "And don't anger mommy like that! You know she has high blood pressure."

"I heard that," Jewel said teasingly. "Come over here before I freeze to death!"

"That's not physically possible in this climate, though—

"—just get over here!" Jewel butted in. Blu wasted no time snuggling in with his companion.

"Oh, man," Jewel said feeling Blu's warmth. "If you get up for any reason I swear I will—

"—just go to sleep," Blu butted in. Jewel was surprised at his remark but wasted no time saying what was on her mind, as her and Blu fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

Back in the air, Nico and Pedro floated in silence as they watched the rest of their friends depart, as they looked at each other.

"Aw, man," Pedro said with a melancholy tone, "we're the only ones with nothing to do, every time!"

"Easy, fella," Nico said trying to calm him down. "Good things come to those who wait, kid!"

"Looks like we're spending the night down at the samba club again," Pedro said sadly. Bent out of shape, he quickly flew away from Nico back towards Ipanema.

"Wait!" Nico yelled as he flew quickly to try and catch up with Pedro. "Slow down, big guy!"

Meanwhile, while Blu and the rest of the birds had stopped flying, Linda, Tulio, and Luiz were still in the air on their hang gliders. Fernando was not feeling well enough to join his stepparents on a hang glide across the city.

* * *

"This is so much fun!" Linda yelled. "But how do we get to the ground?"

"That's easy!" Tulio replied happily. "The wind currents from these mountains keep us up for quite some time, but we eventually will reach ground out by the beach! It's the safest place to land."

"I'm tired!" Luiz yelled, which, of course, was merely heard as barking by the humans.

"How did he get here?" Linda asked, curious.

"I don't know," Tulio replied, puzzled as both of them looked at Luiz.

"Uh, I'm just gonna go now," Luiz said quietly as he made a sharp turn with his glider towards the favela. He glided slowly downwards until just minutes later, when he landed onto the street in front of his garage, where just about a month ago, Blu and Jewel had had their first real fight, and a turning point changed their paths of fate.

As Luiz landed it occurred to him that there was nothing governing him from doing anything he wanted. After all, who was going to try and stop a random dog?

"I know," Luiz said out loud but to himself, "I'll go chill with Nico and Pedro! They're probably at the samba club right now!"

Just then, a pickup truck came down the street, driving slow enough for Luiz to hop into the back as it headed down the steep road back into the city.

* * *

As Luiz left, Linda and Tulio continued to fly downwards to the beach. They still had to close up shop, eat dinner, and find something else to do with their time for the rest of the night.

April, in astrological terms, is winter time in Brazil, though they are not like the cold, snowy, harsh winters of Minnesota. Average temperatures in Rio stay nearly constant throughout the year, something that Linda couldn't seem to believe.

After Luiz broke off from the group, the remaining two humans continued their descent towards the city below.

"So," Linda proclaimed, "when do we get to see some snow?"

Tulio laughed so hard he almost lost grip of the hang glider. "There's no snow here!" he replied. "It's too warm here to snow!"

"But that's no fun!" Linda said, slightly disappointed. "I don't get to ski or use a snowmobile!"

"The Conservation Center owns a boat," Tulio said as he tried to cheer Linda up. "They don't use it much anymore, so anyone that feels like taking a ride can rent it out! Tell you what, why don't we use it tomorrow? Spend a day on the water?"

"That sounds great!" Linda cheered as they headed back down towards the Ipanema Beach.

* * *

Inside the Manduvi tree, all was quiet. Only about 10 minutes after they had gone to sleep, Ramon, Gabriela, Bruno, and Jewel were as sound asleep as a hibernating bear in Minnesota, with dreams comparable to a bright flowery field. Blu, however, was experiencing a less desirable sleeping experience.

Unknown to the humans and his bird family, Blu had severe insomnia. His intelligent mind was constantly focused on retaining information and memories, so much that he constantly found it difficult to sleep. He had hidden this from Linda for the past fifteen years, and even from Jewel as they lay on top of the old spotter's tower in the jungle on the first night they ever spent together.

This was a night that was particularly bad for Blu. His mind raced. All he could see were memories of his experiences in Rio: his first experiences with Jewel, the monkeys, and his leap of faith to save Jewel. They played over and over again in his mind. When Blu did get to sleep, these memories taunted him in a nightmare, circling him. His dream self screamed for help, to no avail.

Blu woke up in a cold sweat. His eyes quickly opened wide as he took a deep breath and looked out of the tree. The bustling city could be heard all around. He felt Jewel's body and wing cuddled closely behind him. Blu had way too much energy for some reason, and he decided that it might be best if he try to burn it off.

Quietly and carefully, Blu pushed Jewel's wing aside from on top of him. She moved slightly, but did not wake up.

Thank you for being a heavy sleeper, Blu thought to himself. He got up and slowly walked over to the hole of the tree, and right before he jumped out to begin flying, he stopped at the edge and looked out onto the landscape.

A large, partially open row of trees stood in front of him, making their way in a straight line away from his tree. Vines hung from the trees. Distant memories played in Blu's head of flying, singing, dancing birds. He tried as hard as he could to remember, but the memories were too vague for him to put a good picture together.

"_I need some alone time_," he thought to himself, as he dove out of the tree and freefell towards the ground. More vibrant memories tried to pronounce themselves in his mind, but they simply couldn't come through, as he pulled up like a plane out of a nosedive, and set course for Ipanema Beach.

**Please excuse the introduction, it was merely intended to set the tone for my writings and build plot and suspense. I felt I had to cut this off here for now because this chapter was getting so long. So, what do you think? Questions? Errors i missed? Let me know in the comments! I want to hear from all of you! I want to make my writing as good as possible, and I cant do that without suggestions. Second chapter to be out soon.**


	2. Chapter 2: Depression

Chapter 2

Back in the air, and while Blu was still sleeping, Tulio and Linda had nearly finished their hang gliding ride.

"This has been great!" Tulio said excitedly as they were about 50 feet off of the ground. "I hope you had as much fun as I did."

"Believe me," Linda assured Tulio, "I had more fun than you could imagine."

As she said this, she romantically kissed Tulio in mid air. Multiple people on the ground stared at them as they were just feet from the ground.

"Hey buddy!" one of the bystanders yelled. "You're gonna hit the—

The man spoke a little too late, as Linda and Tulio hit the ground without their legs extended, causing them to skid on the ground after impact. Tulio lost his grip and fell off as Linda kept skidding on the ground. She let out a shriek from being scared by the impact. She came to a stop another 30 feet up the beach from Tulio.

Tulio picked his head up from out of the sand, his clothes and body covered in the rich white silicon dioxide. He spit a small amount of it out of his mouth as he reached around him for his glasses, which he lost on the impact. Multiple bystanders came to his aid, as well as a few running over to Linda.

"You alright, sir?" one of the men asked as he helped Tulio to his feet.

"I think so," Tulio replied. "I apologize for not watching where I was going."

"There's nothing to apologize for!" another man said as he picked Tulio's glasses up off of the ground and handed them to Tulio. "Mistakes happen, you know?"

"I know, but thank you for the help!"

"Sure thing stranger! Have a good day!" the first man said as he and the other men walked away from Tulio. Tulio immediately ran over to Linda, who was still surrounded by a group of people.

"Out of the way!" Tulio exclaimed as he pushed people out of the way to make his way to Linda. When he got to the center, he saw her nearly unharmed, sitting up in the sand, cleaning her glasses off.

"Thank goodness you're okay!" Tulio exclaimed again as he helped Linda up off of the ground. "How could we have been so foolish?"

"I guess we were just lost in the moment," Linda replied, looking into Tulio's eyes. "Let's just try this again."

Tulio didn't even have to say a word as Linda leaned in for a kiss, which he quickly picked up on and met her in the middle. The crowd around them cheered and began to disperse around them.

After a long passionate kiss, Tulio spoke up.

"What should we do with the hang glider?" Tulio asked.

"Just leave it," Linda replied as they walked to the sidewalk while holding hands.

* * *

Around the same time as the commotion on the beach, Pedro had nearly reached the Ipanema market and the samba club. Nico was basically dragging on him, trying to get his attention.

"Ugh can't you just stop for a minute?" Nico pleaded to his best friend. "At least let me try to help you!"

"Leave me alone!" Pedro yelled as he reached ground in front of the samba club.

For about a month, the samba club was shut down after it was destroyed during the bird-monkey skirmish during the height of Blu's first real day in Rio. Nico and Pedro, being the proprietors of the club, had decided to blow off organizing a rebuild for three weeks because they had organized parties for the welcoming of Blu's and Jewel's chicks into the world. Then, just about a week ago, Nico and Pedro had organized a construction team of Kipo, the spoonbill, his best friends, and some old friends of Pedro's, a group of assorted macaws who had helped him design and construct the samba club. The stealing of the parts for building was left to Pedro.

As Pedro landed he threw Nico off of him with his right wing, sending Nico crashing onto the concrete. Nico writhed in pain for a few seconds after landing on his head.

"Why don't you get it?" Pedro snapped in front of the nearly finished club, still being put together by Kipo and a few macaws. "Leave me alone! Can't you see I don't want to be talked to?" He began to choke up into tears as Nico looked at him, still trying to regain his bearings.

"But," Nico said through his pain as he shed a tear or two, "but you're my best bud—

"—I don't care!" Pedro butted in through angry sobs. "Have fun with your stupid club, and your stupid friends! 'Cuz I'm done wit' you!"

Pedro took off like a bat out of, well, you know where. He turned up out of the market and flew back towards the woods. Nico quickly took chase.

"Kipo," one of the red and blue macaws said to Kipo, "what was all that about?"

"I don't even know," Kipo replied, "and being one of their best friends, I thought I'm supposed to know everything they talk about."

After about a minute of flying, Nico caught up to Pedro again, as he headed higher and higher into the sky, appearing to be heading up to the Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks Rio.

"Slow down!" Nico continued to plead to Pedro, but Pedro did not want to hear any of it. He simply brushed Nico off of his back again, and ignored him as he continued flying up towards the statue.

Whatever he's trying to do, Nico thought, I gotta stop him.

By now, Pedro had reached the statue, with Nico closing in behind him. In a last ditch effort to subdue Pedro, Nico dug his claws into Pedro's back and held his wings together over Pedro's eyes.

"GET OFF OF ME!" Pedro screamed in a full on raging sob from the pain. He nosedived from the top of the statue, and came eerily close to the statue. Within a split second, Nico smacked a small piece of the statue jutting out with his head, knocking him out, sending him freefalling to the concrete below.

Pedro, in his raging sob, looked back as Nico freefell towards the concrete walkway below. A myriad of descriptive thoughts simultaneously rang in Pedro's mind, all of great times with Nico. Realizing that his friend would face certain death if he hit the ground, Pedro swooped underneath Nico and caught him with his back just a few feet from the floor of the walkway. Pedro pulled up to avoid hitting the walkway, and he landed as softly as he could onto the walkway floor. He looked at Pedro and set him down slowly.

Minutes later, Nico regained consciousness as he looked around with blurry sight. As his sight improved, he noticed Pedro sitting on the railing overlooking the city. His head and wings were relaxed, telling Nico that Pedro was no longer raging, though he did still hear weeping.

Nico slowly got up and walked over to him and flew up onto the railing. He sat down beside Pedro and put his wing behind Pedro's back.

"I don't even know how," Pedro said through heavy sobs. The anger was gone.

"How what?" Nico asked, still completely puzzled about how this entire thing started.

"How I could've done what I've done," Pedro replied.

"I don't understand," Nico said, still trying to clear it up.

"You don't know what today is," Pedro said sternly through his sobs, "do you?"

"Pedro," Nico proceeded, "I thought I knew you like a book but this, this is just going way too fast for me."

"Today is April 4th," Pedro spoke in monotone. "You mean after all we've been through, I never told you about April 4th?"

"No, bro," Nico assured Pedro. "Get this monkey off your chest before I end up having to bury a suicidal body full of secrets!"

"For starters," Pedro said, beginning to calm down, "you know I'm no city bird."

"Of course I know that!" Nico said cheerfully trying to bring his spirits up, and it seemed to be working. "You're a Pantanal Person!"

Most of you would miss this, and for those who would, this is for you. The birds of Rio and the birds of the Pantanal declare themselves different. The birds of Rio are known as the Rio Rats and the birds of the Pantanal are known as the Pantanal People. Note that these are derogatory terms. Please, for the sake of your own life, don't call either side by their Brazilian Rivalry name.

"And proud of it!" Pedro replied, starting to sound cheerful. "I've never told you about my life in the Pantanal, though, have I?"

"That must be what I'm missing from my picture," Nico said, realizing what was going on. He assumed the worst for what was to come, and he sure got it.

"My life was incredible," Pedro said with emphasis. His life story began to open up in front of him. "My mama, Silvia, my papa, Rosario, my bro, Tico, and my beautiful girl, Rachel. Man, were we like one big happy bunch living in that tree. My life was perfect man, until, until…" His voice trailed off, replaced by drowning sobs and screams from his crying. Nico was in disbelief and grief-stricken, so much that he too began to shed tears.

"Wh-Wh-What happened to them?" Nico sobbed, shaking Pedro to convince him to pour it all out and end this sorrow.

"I-I never saw it coming!" Pedro continued in more endless sobbing. "Fire, screaming, burning heat, roasted—

"—Stop!" Nico yelled, shaking Pedro wildly. "Don't tell me stuff like that, man! Calm down now!"

Pedro's sobs were reduced to quiet sniffles as the tears stopped and the air became nearly silent.

"You get my point, bro," Pedro said with his head hung down. Nico stopped weeping and held his best friend by his side in what seemed like the worst moment in his life since the event he had just so descriptively explained.

"You need something to get your bearings straight," Nico said hushed as he tried to calm the air for Pedro. "If you look down there, you can see the new beacon." Nico pointed to Ipanema, where a red flashing light was easily visible from the top of a building just a few streets from the beach. "You see that? That's our samba club, bro. The one you helped me build! I got a new guy in today that I know that you're gonna love. He's gonna whip you up something you're gonna tumble over for! What do ya say?"

"I'll do it, bro," Pedro said as he fist pounded Nico, "and this time, I'll follow your lead!"

They both laughed as they dove off of the railing and swooped into the air towards the samba club.

As they arrived at the market, they encountered a rather peculiar sight. The club's lights were on, the drapes completely rebuilt, the music blasting louder than ever, and a massive line of birds lined up for at least a hundred feet, nearly out of the market.

"Something's not right," Nico said. "I need a closer look. Come on."

The two friends took flight again and flew over the crowd. The crowd looked up and yelled things like "get in line!" and "wait your turn!" before they reached the front. A small gate was closed at the entrance to the club, being guarded by none other than Kipo.

"Kipo!" Nico yelled at Kipo. "Where did all of these people come from?"

"You can blame your foolish friends, Pedro!" Kipo replied loudly over the conversations of others. "One of your macaw friends spilled the beans to the whole forest that there's a new party place in Ipanema! He told them to look for the red light, and from there, ah man, it all went downhill! There's a guy inside that wants to see you two, first left! I had to close this place off before we had another monkey incident from overcrowding and riots! My friends are circling the place to keep guys in line! Go on in!"

Kipo opened the gate and Nico and Pedro entered the club, to the line's displeasure, and they tried to break the gate down. Kipo's friends went into action and stopped the charge, kicking birds out left and right, maintaining order.

Nico and Pedro went to the first left of the club, the new bar area, manned by a new friend of Nico's. The bird was a stark, predominantly brown, Black-footed Albatross with the intimidating name of Ivan. Ivan, though busy at the moment, recognized that Nico and Pedro had arrived.

"Boys!" Ivan yelled as he saw the two. "Be with you in a second! This guy over here wants the real stuff!"

Included in the new construction plans were powerful, more permanent lighting fixtures, a bigger better stage, more instruments, and a brand new boombox controlled by a computer with surround sound speakers. The bar was complete with small glasses and bottles stolen from various children's' play sets, as well as seats made out of old cans of fruits and vegetables. Birds should have been dancing everywhere like there was no tomorrow, but birds stood around awkwardly with their companions. The bar should have been as crowded as the dance floor, but it was nearly empty, except for one bird on the end. A song completely unknown to everyone in the club was playing, _Far Behind _by Candlebox, a 90's hit that Nico and Pedro listened to awkwardly as they entered.

"Something's going on here," Nico said as he and Pedro passed by birds listening to the music oddly, wondering what it was. "Let's talk to that guy at the bar, see what's going on."

Nico and Pedro made their way to the end of the bar, and they stood right behind the bird at the end of the bar. It was difficult to see who it was in the low light of the club, but the bird turned around before Nico or Pedro had to say anything, and who they saw took them completely off guard.

* * *

While Nico and Pedro were flying around the city in a massive fight, Blu had left his tree in search of some way to burn off some excess energy, though it wasn't working. Blu traveled all around the city, from the beaches of the east side to the beaches of the west side. He was flying so quickly that his eyes began to tear up from the wind drying his eyes out. By the time he reached Ipanema, his efforts had proven fruitless. He was in no way tired.

Blu began to feel a bit depressed. His life had gone from seriously simple in Minnesota to becoming extremely complex in Rio, balancing time with friends and time with taking care of Jewel and the kids.

Sometimes, a father just needs a break, Blu thought to himself as he noticed the large red beacon on top of the building. He swooped down towards the market to investigate, and as he did, he caught a glimpse of Nico and Pedro in his peripherals, although he couldn't make out who they were.

As Blu landed at the market, he came across Kipo and a few macaws finishing up on the club.

"Guys it looks great!" Blu exclaimed as he landed. "Nico and Pedro are gonna love it!"

"I gotta be home in 5 minutes!" one of the macaws yelled. "Kipo, you look like you got that last thing, we'll see you later, 'ight?"

"Sure thing, boys!" Kipo called to them as they took off and left the market.

"Um," Blu said awkwardly, "maybe you didn't hear me the first time!"

"Ay, Blu!" Kipo yelled overjoyed as he came down off of the roof and shook Blu's wing with his wing. "Long time no see buddy! Where's your life companion at today, bud?"

"Oh she's at home," Blu replied in a more mellow tone, "taking care of the kids."

"Whoa there bro!" Kipo said excitedly. "You got it going for ya now! Congrats bud! I'm so happy everything worked out for ya!"

"So when does the place open?" Blu digressed.

"We were planning on opening it tomorrow night," Kipo replied, "but for a good friend, you can be our first guest! Go on in, music's all yours! Go to the back of the club, look something up on the computer, and enjoy!"

"Thanks!" Blu said with a half smile, still not in the best mood. In his mind thoughts flashed of how he was a no-good parent for leaving his wife and kids behind just because he couldn't sleep. This just made him feel worse.

He slowly entered the club and walked to the back of the club and onto the stage. Ivan the Albatross was at the bar setting drinks and glasses up when he noticed Blu dragging his tail across the floor.

"Hey!" Ivan yelled to Blu as he got up behind the computer. Blu looked his way.

"Um," Blu said shyly, having no idea who Ivan was, "Hi."

"You look bent out of shape," Ivan said empathetically. "I know sometimes things don't work out, but trust me, you'll get her next time!"

"What are you talking about?" Blu asked, puzzled.

"Oh it's not about a girl is it?" Ivan said as he realized his mistake. "Put something on and come over here and have a seat. I'll make you something delicious."

Blu looked through music on the computer until he came across something he knew from his days with Linda in Minnesota. Linda was a crazy Nirvana fan into her teenage years, and blasting _Smells Like Teen Spirit_ was a common practice in her house, only to have it turned down by her overprotective parents.

Blu chose the song and walked back over to the bar as the main starting riff of the song played, Blu went into party mode, his entire chemistry changed, and he seemed to have forgotten about what was dragging him down, at least for a moment. He played air guitar and jumped in the air like a crazy bird, and as the first verse came on, he mellowed out again and sat down at the bar, singing the song to himself in his head.

_ "Load up on guns, bring your friends, it's fun to lose and to pretend…"_

"You sure you're alright?" Ivan asked again. "I was so sure that you were heartbroken I could've bet money on it!"

"I just can't sleep," Blu said with a sigh.

"Ah, insomniac, I see," Ivan said. "We Ukrainians, we share a similar problem. The climate varies so much it's like a shock to our bodies. So, first round's on the house, I'm told! Anything you want, it's yours."

"Give me the most volatile stuff you have," Blu said, trying to calm down and get sleepy, to no avail.

"Well," Ivan thought, "I have some nasty grape juice that sat for three years. The stuff is so strong, that put people on the floor after a taste!"

"Well what are you waiting for?" Blu yelled. "Hit me!"

Ivan grabbed the sour grape juice, known to humans as wine, and poured a small amount into a small glass for Blu. Blu threw it down quickly and he got up from the shock of it going down his throat.

"I told you!" Ivan chuckled just as the song had ended. Another song came on that was selected randomly from a list, _Say You, Say Me _by Lionel Richie, which had significance to Blu as the first song he ever heard with Jewel. More thoughts hit him like a train. "You're a bad parent" and "You're such an idiot" rang in his mind, driving him to tears as he sat back down and rested his head on the bar.

As he did this, loud yelling came from outside of the club, as a loud bunch of people came storming in through the front door. Blu could hear muffled screams from Kipo as he tried to stop the large group from coming inside. The people coming in the door stopped dancing quite quickly, as they heard the unfamiliar music.

Blu needed to get this song off before his own mind drove him to insanity. He got up out of his seat and sprinted to the stage computer. He ran behind it and stopped the song. He breathed a sigh of relief. He put a song on to help him calm down again, _Far Behind _by Candlebox, another favorite of Linda's. Blu scurried back to the bar and sat down.

_"Now maybe, I didn't mean to treat you bad, but I did it anyway…"_

"Did you like that drink?" Ivan yelled to him from just feet away.

"Not powerful enough," Blu said.

"I'll try whipping you up something that'll knock your claws off!" Ivan chuckled as he grabbed a few drinks and started pouring them together in Blu's glass.

At that moment, something terrible hit Blu. It wasn't a physical pain, like a sore knee, but rather a mental pain, followed by pictures of Jewel, leading Blu to believe that something may have been wrong with her at home. He tried harder to focus on what his mind was telling him, closing his eyes, putting his head on the bar, and scrunching up in his seat. In the background he heard Ivan say to someone, "Boys! Be with you in a second! This guy over here wants the real stuff" as he continued to pour Blu's drink.

_"…your friends they stand beside as you were flying, oh you were flying oh so high…"_

In the middle of his thinking, Blu heard people close behind him. They said nothing, but Blu heard their footsteps. He stepped out of his thoughts and turned his head around to see who it was. It was Nico and Pedro, completely surprised by Blu being there. At the same time, birds were expressing their displeasure of the music by leaving the club.

"You've got some explaining to do," Pedro said to Blu.

**Ah, nothing like a little break in the action to keep the audience on the edge of their seats! I wanted to get this out to you guys. Please excuse my musical choices; it was my attempt at finding songs that fit the plot well. Hope you guys like it! As usual, comments, questions, and errors i missed in the review section, or feel free to message me! I want to hear from you, the reader! Tell your friends and fellow Rio lovers! Chapter Three to be out within the next two days!**


	3. Chapter 3: Act of Terror

Chapter 3

Rafael is no old bird, nor is he dumb, to any extent. He is an intelligent, reliable, selfless bird who seems to always see a situation through before it even gets to that point. His tree is within a hundred yards of Blu's and Jewel's tree, somewhat coincidental, yet somewhat strategic. If anything ever went wrong for any reason, Rafael or Eva, or one of their kids for that matter, would be within earshot to pick up any unusual noises. Because animals are habit-forming, things outside of the norm can always seem to bug anyone in a situation.

Rafael, being older in bird years than any of his friends, needs more sleep, which explains why he left his friends earlier than expected, and because of his family, of course. But Rafael going to bed early isn't taken as annoying or a burden by the rest of the gang; rather it is taken more as a luxury, allowing Rafael and Eva to monitor activity in the area, in the event something were to ever happen. Unfortunately, because things are always real in Rio, the gang had to learn this lesson the hard way.

Rafael was one deep sleeper, and Eva was no light sleeper, either, being the reason why the group was so surprised.

It was around the time Blu was first sitting down at the bar when loud rustling of leaves could be heard outside of Rafael's and Eva's tree. This was no wind, but rather deliberate rustling by someone, and it couldn't have been anything friendly, because a scream followed.

Rafael was awake before the scream. The very first sounds of rustling were fast, loud, and resonating. His eyes opened wide as the rustling sound filled the air. He quickly looked around his room and Eva and all 18 of his children were accounted for. It was enough for him to get out of bed and look, though.

"What's going on?" Eva asked as he hopped up out of bed.

"Grab the kids, honey," Rafael replied. "Go hide in the corner while I check this out."

Through the gleam of the city lights, figures were visible in the forest, jumping and shaking tree branches everywhere, and it appeared the Rafael wasn't the only one awoken by the noise. Birds from nearly every tree were coming out of their nests and holes to view the commotion that seemed to be coming from a bunch of rowdy kids.

Rafael looked around at all of the figures. They were medium sized birds, about the size of Blu. Different colors reflected off of them as they moved, so Rafael knew that they weren't Blue Macaws. In fact, they ranged in color, from red, to blue, to yellow, to green, and mixes of all of them. Worse, they were closing in on a tree. Unknown to Rafael in the low light, they were closing in on Blu's tree and Blu wasn't home.

"Could you please keep the bloody noise down?" a bird yelled from his tree a few yards away. The group of birds stopped moving in the trees and all of their heads shifted to the bird's direction. One bird broke from the group and flew to the bird's tree. A few seconds of silence passed, followed by a scream. The next thing Rafael knew, the group of birds were scattered everywhere, and now, it sounded like the entire forest was screaming.

Rafael was no wimp. He had been around long enough to know how to fend off an attacker if it ever came time to do it. So as he flapped his wings in a stationary position, as screams were heard everywhere and birds were flying in all directions, one headed towards him. Rafael knew that his life, or more important, his wife and children's lives, were in danger. Rafael's way of thinking changed in a heartbeat.

"_Mess with me all you want_," Rafael said to himself, "_and I'll deal with it. Mess with my family, and oh man did you just cross the line._"

The bird flying towards him was in full gallop. Rafael took aim as he came ever closer, and just as the bird was about to spear him, Rafael stuck his beak out into the path of the bird, and his large beak speared the incoming bird. The impact was just above the beak, in the sloped area between the bird's eyes. Rafael's beak was so sharp that it cracked the bird's skull, and his beak became lodged in the birds head. The bird stopped moving, and fell like a lead weight. Rafael could not handle the weight, and it pulled him down out of the sky, plunging him to the ground.

The impact did not knock Rafael out, but it did cause the other bird to come off of his beak. Rafael was severely shaken up by the impact, and he sat on the ground, writhing in pain. He was getting too old for fighting. Take a few years off of him, though, and he would've been back in the fight in a matter of seconds.

It took Rafael about 10 minutes to get his bearings before he got up and examined the bird. It was a red, blue, and yellow macaw, probably about Blu's age. He was completely unresponsive, and Rafael was almost sure that he was dead.

Rafael's next issue lied with Blu, Jewel, and their kids. He had to make sure that they were alright. He took flight and made his way towards their tree. All around him, birds were flying in all directions, and screams were still being heard. Rafael feared the worst for Blu and his family, because Blu never seemed like the fighting type to him.

As he arrived at Blu's tree, he had completely surprised a red macaw inside of the tree, and with the stab of his beak, rendered the bird unresponsive. Rafael subsequently pushed the bird out of the tree to the depths of the jungle below. Rafael rushed over to Jewel, who was out cold. He checked for a pulse, which he found. He breathed a sigh of relief. In the other corner of the room were Ramon, Bruno, and Gabriela. They were huddled together, shaking with fear like a vibrating cell phone.

"Uncle Ralphie?" Bruno said, scared to death.

"It's okay," Rafael said as he covered the children with his wings, "it's okay. Where is your father?"

"He's not here," Gabriela replied. "Mommy looked everywhere and she started crying."

"She told us to stay here," Ramon said. "She went into that corner," he pointed to the corner she was lying in, "and she huddled in the corner and started talking to herself."

"Then that guy came in," Bruno finished. "He hit Mommy and turned and looked funny at us! Then you came and you were all bam bam bam!"

Just then, a bird came into the nest, behind Rafael. Rafael turned around and gasped as he held the kids behind him. The bird had an evil smile, and came closer and closer to them, when from nowhere, a whacking noise was heard, followed by the sound of a crack and a slice, and the bird's face went emotionless, as he fell forward, revealing their savior standing right in front of them.

* * *

Back at the club, while the fight in the forest was just beginning, Blu had just turned around to see who was behind him. Nico and Pedro were just as surprised as he was.

"You've got some explaining to do," Pedro said to Blu.

"Guys," Blu said, "I feel terrible right now—

"—dang right you should feel terrible!" Pedro interrupted. "You're ruining our business and stealing our drinks! What is this garbage that's playing?"

"If you'd shut up maybe I could explain!" Blu roared. Pedro's eyes widened and he stopped talking. "Now, as I was saying, Kipo let me in here and told me to put music on, and Ivan told me drinks were on the house!"

"Hey hey hey!" Ivan said. "I said the first drink was on the house! This one's gonna cost you—

"—that's not important right now!" Blu butted in, screaming. "Something's wrong at home, I felt it!" Blu stood up out of his seat and towered over Nico and Pedro. "Now get out of my way. Jewel's in trouble!"

Blu pushed Nico and Pedro aside, stormed out the front door and took off out of the market. Unhappy birds griped and complained, while moments later, another large group of birds came storming in the front door.

"We gotta control this crowd," Nico said to Pedro. "Ivan!" He turned to Ivan, who was standing awkwardly after Blu's rant. "Get the drinks ready! Call people over! Pedro!" He turned back to Pedro. "Get up there and put on a party mix they'll never forget!"

"Gotcha!" Ivan yelled as he grabbed the drinks.

"On it!" Pedro yelled as he scurried through the crowd to the DJ booth. Equipped on the booth was a small turntable, which Pedro proceeded to scratch back and forth a few times to get the crowd's attention. They stopped talking and turned to Pedro, waiting for his next move.

"Wassup, Ipanema?!" Pedro yelled into the microphone. The crowd went crazy with cheers of every kind. Some went over to the bar and sat down for cold drinks from Ivan. "Sorry about before, a good friend of mine was testing the speakers out. I think it's time for some music!"

Pedro turned on the karaoke music of _Shots _by Lil' John. The music cued and the group started dancing. Pedro sang along to the karaoke with his own lyrics.

_"If you're not messed up ladies and gentlemen, uh huh, get ready to get messed up, let's do it, uh huh. Yeah. Pedro Carlinhos, yeah, Ipanema, yeah! All you crazy Brazilian birds out there, let's go!"_

The entire club was now bustling with craziness as the birds partied like there was no tomorrow. Nico stood near the bar and watched happily as Pedro took the stage and let all out. A few feet away, however, something different was going on. Behind Nico were two Red Macaws, talking about a rather odd topic.

"There's no way this can work," one said to the other. "Blu picked up on it, despite our best efforts!"

"Shut up," the other said to the first one. "Do you want the whole place to know that we used them?"

Nico slowly leaned over to Ivan on the bar.

"Ivan," Nico whispered to Ivan, "see those two macaws behind me?"

Ivan came closer and put his wing on the bar, resting his head on his wing. "Yeah, I heard them too. What should I do?"

"Lure 'em out back," Nico replied. "Knock 'em out and wait 'till Blu gets back. I've got a friend coming that can help us out."

"A friend?" Ivan asked, puzzled.

"Just wait and see when he gets here," Nico assured Ivan.

Ivan left the bar and approached the two macaws. Ivan was decently taller than both them, and they were surprised when they turned to see Ivan standing in front of them.

"Evening, boys," Ivan said to them.

"Evening, sir," the second macaw said. "What can we do for you?"

"I have a few shipments coming in out back that I am severely understaffed to handle," Ivan explained. "I ask for your help with carrying these things in with me."

"Gladly," the first one replied.

"I think we have to get going, though," the second macaw nudged to the first one.

"This guy needs our help, Remy," the first one said to Remy, the more intelligent macaw.

"My wife's been complaining about that mess of a tree I live in for a week now!" Remy yelled. "I need to clean it up before she gets home tomorrow!"

Ivan realized that Remy was way too intelligent, or paranoid, to fall for their trick. From behind and out of view, Ivan clocked Remy in the back of the heed with his massive wing, knocking him out. The second macaw stood there, completely afraid to move.

"Sorry," Ivan said to the macaw as he stood in fear. "Guilt by association." Ivan proceeded to hit the second macaw too, knocking him out as well. No one in the club noticed anything, for they were too caught up in the music and Pedro's singing. Ivan picked both of the macaws up between his wings and carried them to the back of the club with Nico.

As they headed for the back, Kipo busted in through the front door. The sound of him coming in surprised Pedro, and he stopped singing and turned the music off.

"Nico!" Kipo yelled in a combination of an out-of-breath voice and a crying voice. "Get Ivan now! We have a serious medical emergency!"

* * *

Immediately after Blu had left the club, Kipo had instantly recognized from Blu's attitude that something was seriously wrong. Right before Blu was about to take flight, Kipo put his wing on Blu and Blu stopped and turned around.

"What's wrong?" Blu asked Kipo.

"You need help, bud?" Kipo responded.

"I could use the backup," Blu replied. "Something doesn't feel right. There may be something wrong back at the sanctuary."

"I'm with you all the way, bud," Kipo replied. "Hey Sanchez!" He turned to one of his friends in the air. "Keep watch for me! I'm going to help a friend out!"

"Will do!" Sanchez replied as he landed to handle the crowd that was growing ever larger.

"Let's go," Blu said. Blu and Kipo took off from the club and turned out of the market.

"So what kind of feeling are you getting?" Kipo asked as they quickly made their way to the forest.

"I saw Jewel," Blu replied, looking determined, his eyes fixed on the forest. "I saw her in my mind, and I heard screams and felt pain. I don't just get these things Kipo. When I get them there's a serious problem involved. I'm not taking any chances!"

"We'll help her," Kipo assured Blu.

"I can't imagine that it's isolated," Blu said. "Someone else had to hear something. Please, let my babe and my kids be okay."

"Is this what you were sad about before?" Kipo asked.

"No," Blu made clear with a strong tone. "That was something else. I knew I shouldn't have left the tree!"

"Why did you leave the tree?" Kipo asked again.

"I couldn't sleep," Blu said with a sigh. "I thought I could burn some energy off and head back to bed, but nothing worked. Man, am I stupid!"

Blu and Kipo had just reached the sanctuary. Right off the bat, Blu and Kipo knew that something was wrong. From their angle, the birds were nearly invisible, but the screams were as loud as ever.

"Help!" someone screamed before being taken down below the lower canopy of the forest. The air around some of the trees smelled like iron.

"Iron," Blu said to himself under his breath. Kipo heard it but had no time to say anything, because Blu had put a wing over Kipo's mouth. About 10 yards away from him was his own tree, where a bird had just flown inside. Blu was about to fly into his tree when Kipo stopped him.

"You'll need this," Kipo said as he handed Blu a small piece of sharpened metal in his talons.

"But," Blu stuttered, "I can't take someone else's life. It's against so many things I stand for—

"—go before someone you know dies!" Kipo interrupted, pushing Blu towards the tree amidst birds still flying around hitting each other, and screaming.

Blu entered the tree and quickly took hold of a situation much worse than what he had perceived it to be. Jewel was lying down, unconscious. Rafael was holding the kids while a red macaw crept closer and closer to them. Blu made a split second decision to do what he had to do. He picked the sharp piece of metal out of his talons with his wing and threw it through the air, end over end, making contact with the back of the intruder's head, slicing into it. The intruder stopped moving forward and froze as he fell to the floor.

"Blu?" Rafael gasped, in complete surprise that Blu was alive, let alone the fact that he had just taken the life of another.

"Rafael?" Blu gasped, as surprised as Rafael was.

"Jewel needs help!" Rafael yelled as he ran over to Jewel to check her vitals again. "She's still breathing and has a pulse, but she has a nasty bump on her head!"

"Let me see!" Blu yelled as he knelt down beside Jewel. He felt the bump on her head. "Oh no."

"What?" Rafael said. "What's wrong?"

"She's been hit right on the temporal lobe!" Blu yelled. He seemed to sit back and look into space with a stupor.

"English, Blu!" Rafael pleaded. "English please!"

"She's not gonna remember me," Blu said staring off into space.

Rafael stared at Blu in disbelief, just as Kipo showed up at the hole.

"What's going on in here?" Kipo asked.

"Kipo!" Rafael yelled. "Get a doctor! Get someone up here to help Jewel out! From the looks around the forest, she's not the only one who needs help!"

"On it!" Kipo said as he quickly took off and headed back towards the city. He flew back into the city and back to the samba club, where he barged inside, just as Ivan was taking the two Red Macaws out back.

"Nico!" Kipo yelled the moment he saw him in the club. The music stopped and everyone stared. "Get Ivan now! We have a serious medical emergency!"

"Moment, please!" Ivan yelled as he threw the two Red Macaws down onto the ground and ran back to the front of the club.

"Follow me!" Kipo said. "We have countless dead and wounded. We gotta help them out!"

"What's going on?" Pedro yelled from across the room. Birds in the group of partiers began to talk and wonder what was going on.

"We have a serious emergency in the sanctuary!" Kipo yelled to the crowd. "Please go home until the issues get sorted out, make sure your families are safe, and keep your eyes peeled. We're gonna need all the help we can get, people! Some of you need to come and help us out!"

"What about me?" Nico asked while standing next to the two unconscious birds.

"Stay there!" Pedro yelled. "Watch them two birds! I'll go with them to help out!" He turned to the crowd. "Show's over people! Go home!"

"I'll wait for Kepler!" Nico yelled back through the loudening crowd. "He's coming momentarily!"

A mass exodus ensued of birds leaving the club, most rather quickly to check on their families, including Ivan, who was guided by one of Kipo's friends to the sanctuary. A few, however, walked slowly and conversed.

"Stop them!" Kipo yelled to his friends above as a few macaws walked slowly from the club. They tried to fly away quickly, but Kipo's friends were there in a heartbeat. They held them down on the ground.

"Kipo," Pedro said. "Those are a couple of my buddies! Why are holding them?"

"Your buddies," Kipo said, "are no more than a bunch of liars!"

"Kipo what are you talking about?" Pedro asked in disbelief.

"Guy is dead, Pedro," Kipo said solemnly. "Blu killed him. These guys are up to something. I can't wait until Ivan gets back!"

"Whoa!" a voice from out of nowhere yelled as he approached the samba club through the market. Kipo, Pedro, Nico, Kipo's friends, and the macaws held down looked up to see who it was, met with a massive dark blue bird that blocked out lights. "What have I been missing?"

**And cut! That's a wrap! Well at least for this chapter! What do you think, guys? Questions? Comments? Errors I missed? Let me know! Chapter Four should be out within a couple of days!**


	4. Chapter 4: Unanswered Questions Part I

Chapter 4

Tulio thought he'd never find love. It wasn't even in his life plan to find love, because long ago he had accepted the fact that it wouldn't happen. That all changed when he was searching through articles online about endangered species, and found one on a recently discovered male Blue Macaw living in Minnesota. After years of looking for where he went, the Brazilian Institute for the Conservation of Endangered Species had finally tracked down Blu's listing number as an exotic pet. The next thing he knew, Tulio was on a plane to Minnesota. Not long after, he met the greatest woman in his life, Linda. Sounds like a happy ending, but if the ending were to be happy, Tulio would have to forget about his family's past.

Around the same time as Nico and Pedro's first fight, Tulio and Linda fetched a cab on the streets of Ipanema after their embarrassing run-in with a hang glider.

"Where to?" the cabbie asked.

"Botafogo is fine," Tulio happily replied. The cabbie nodded and headed off down the street parallel to the beach.

"So," Tulio turned and said to Linda as they sat in the cab, "I figured we should go home to check on Fernando. If he's not feeling well, then we should change and head to dinner. I'll order something to bring home for him."

"But we didn't even decide on where to go!" Linda replied.

Tulio looked at her oddly for a moment as he thought of things in his mind. "Remember the place we first dined at?" he asked, remembering the moment he looked into her eyes and fell in love with her.

"Of course!" Linda replied, smiling at him. "Flaming chicken hearts!"

Tulio laughed. "Yes! Well, I have been awaiting tonight for quite some time."

"What's happening tonight?" Linda asked, surprised that Tulio had something planned that she didn't know about.

"Tonight," Tulio explained, "I am meeting an old friend. I have not seen him in fifteen years! His name is Billy Carter, and he lives in the U.S.! He is an old friend of my father's. He hasn't been in Rio in more than 30 years!"

"Why are you meeting him?" Linda continued to wonder.

"My father was a very secret man," Tulio continued. "I knew very little about what he did and who he knew until after he died. He left everything behind for me to find: his notes, documents, and some of his nature films, along with the rest of his possessions. He founded the Conservancy and its national counterpart, the BICES. Without it, I would have never found Blu!"

"You know you never really told me much about Blu," Linda said, "right?"

"Well," Tulio said, "what do you want to know?"

"Everything," Linda replied. "Blu is everything to me, yet I don't even know where he came from! When I first found him, I heard a really loud noise outside and I went out to see what it was. I saw a box with holes in it on the ground and I opened it and found him inside!"

"Well I know he was registered in the exotic pet industry—

"—We're here," the cabbie interrupted. Thirty five Reais."

Tulio reached into his pocket and pulled out 35 Reais. He handed them to the cabbie and opened the door onto the sidewalk.

"Thank you," the cabbie said as he accepted the money and Tulio and Linda got out of the cab. "Have a good day!"

"You too!" Tulio replied as the cabbie drove away. He turned to Linda. "Quick! Let's get back to the house!"

Tulio and Linda jogged across the street and walked a couple of blocks to their home and business, 'Livreria Blu', which was a popular bookstore, especially in the matters of information on birds.

As they arrived home, they went upstairs to their apartment and to check on Fernando. Tulio and Linda slowly opened the door to Fernando's room, just in case he was sleeping. Their suspicions were correct; Fernando wasn't feeling any better. He was sound asleep, so Linda and Tulio decided not to disturb him. They quietly closed his door and went to their bedroom to change and shower.

While entering his bedroom, Tulio's phone rang. He quickly looked at it to see who it was. The caller ID said "Big Billy" and Tulio knew who it was. He picked it up and answered.

"Hello?" Tulio said. "Yes, this is Tulio." "It's good to hear from you Billy. Are we still on for tonight?" "Yes, it's right on the Avenue, right where you saw it on the GPS." "Perfect. We'll be there in about 45 minutes." "Peace." He hung up.

"Peace?" Linda yelled from the shower. "Who says peace anymore? And who was that?"

"It was Billy," Tulio replied. "He's meeting us at the Café in 45 minutes."

"I can't get done in that time!" Linda said unhappily.

"Well then it looks like we're going to be fashionably late to a reunion!" Tulio said.

* * *

Back in the sanctuary, Blu and Rafael never left Jewel's side. Blu was holding her head on his stomach to keep a good angle on it, while the rest of her body was limp. Moments after Kipo had left, a large scream was heard outside of the tree.

"RETREAT!" the voice yelled. As soon as he had said it, birds came out of nowhere and started bolting away from the sanctuary down through the row of trees. They were not able to go far, though. Out from the trees and into the forest was a sea of birds, mostly ones from the club asked to help, including some of Kipo's friends and Ivan who started grabbing birds and hitting them against one another and off of trees. The rest of the group of birds evaded the group that showed up, and they retreated north, back over the mountains and out of the sanctuary. The birds that showed up breathed a sigh of relief and began flying over to trees to aid those who needed help. Ivan dropped into Blu's nest first.

"What's going on in here?" Ivan asked as he landed in the tree.

"She needs help!" Blu yelled to Ivan. Ivan rushed over to his side and looked at her.

"She's been hit badly," Ivan said, holding her head. "How long has she been out?"

"About 20 minutes," Rafael replied from the corner of the room.

"This kind of injury does not usually cause a long state of unconsciousness," Ivan explained. "Expect her to be awake within the next few minutes. Now, I need to tend to others who are badly injured, but thank you for letting me see her."

"Thank you for helping us out," Blu said while managing a weak but natural smile. Ivan nodded and took off to another tree.

"The air," Rafael said from the corner, "it stinks."

"It's iron," Blu said.

"Why is there iron?" Rafael did not understand.

"Iron is a contributing scent in blood," Blu said with a sad tone. "Someone, if not, many, are badly hurt and bleeding. I've never seen an act of violence like this before, maybe in the human world, but not here."

"I must check on my family," Rafael said to Blu. "I must stay with them to ensure that they are alright. Be careful, and I hope Jewel wakes up soon. See you later."

"Bye, Rafael," Blu said as Rafael took off from the nest, leaving the Blue Macaw family to themselves in their tree.

Rafael sped back to his nest, and as he arrived, he was relieved to see Eva and their 18 children snuggled up in the corner. Rafael hugged his wife and children as hard as he could.

"I'm so glad you're alright," Rafael said to his family.

"From what I heard," Eva said in the hug, "a lot of people are not the same way."

At the samba club, Ivan had just left, and Nico, Pedro, Kipo, a couple of Kipo's friends, and the apprehended macaws looked in awe as a massive bird came down from the sky into the market. The bird was a rich dark blue, even darker than Blu. Not to mention, he was nearly double Blu's size.

"Whoa!" the huge bird said as he landed. "What have I been missing?" As he touched down, he yelled out in pain. "OW! For the love of all that's good! That hurt!"

"Kepler!" Nico yelled to the bird. Indeed, it was Keplar, a Hyacinth Macaw, another threatened species of macaw. He was larger than most of the birds there by a long shot. From his head to the tip of his tail, he was over three feet long, and his wingspan was nearly five feet. To the majority of the birds there, this guy was a monster.

Nico ran over to him after he landed funny. "You alright?" Nico asked.

"Yeah I'm good," Kepler replied in a non-Brazilian accent, shaking his wings and folding them back into place. "It's just the arthritis, kid. I can't do what I used to."

"Wait," Kipo said to Kepler, "you're not younger?"

"Fifty five to be exact," Kepler said as he turned to Kipo, "but don't think in any way that I'm a weakling of any kind! I'll bite any of your God forsaken heads off before you can learn how to spell my name!"

"Dang you look good for fifty five," Pedro said flying up to him and landing next to Pedro. "What's your secret?"

"I'm not like you, kid," Kepler replied. "I spent quite a bit of time in the hands of a human, and trust me. They know how to take care of you. Not these, people, though. All they do is steal from our world. They take our homes, our food, and our families. Maybe this new generation is different, I'm not quite sure. But anyways, what is all this commotion? I see birds knocked out over there, and I see birds sitting on top of birds over here!"

"We're gonna need your interrogation skills for this one," Nico said to Kepler. "These guys know stuff that we need to know."

"What do you need to know?" Kepler asked. "Yeah I'll beat it out of 'em for ya."

"Nico," Pedro said to Nico, "Ivan's not gonna be back for a while, so we might want to get this started now."

"Good idea," Nico replied. "Kepler, come with me. We're gonna tie one of these sleeping birds up and get him to talk."

"On it," Kepler replied as he followed Nico to the back of the club, where the birds were still laying.

"How'd this happen?" Kepler asked.

"That's the work of Ivan," Nico replied. "He's the new bartender here. These guys were talking about a little plan, and apparently it's not looking so good up in the sanctuary."

"There's a sanctuary for birds?" Kepler asked, very surprised.

"Yes, sir," Nico replied. "A good number live up there. Someone launched an act of terror on them within the hour, though, and it's not looking good."

"What kind of generation were you born into?" Kepler said rhetorically.

"Apparently," Nico said, "it's not one like yours."

"You were never there to understand it!" Kepler said defending his former ways of life. "Your grandfather wouldn't be very happy if he saw this generation!"

"I know a guy that you'll love, then," Nico said. "Wait 'till he gets here."

Kepler picked up the dumb red macaw's body and carried it outside behind the club. They put him next to a small tin can and tied him up with small string from the club. They waited a few minutes until he came to.

* * *

After nearly an hour of preparation for the evening, Linda and Tulio were finished and ready to head to the café. Linda was wearing a blue dress, while Tulio was dressed in his finest tuxedo. Before they were about to leave their bedroom, Linda walked into the room to find Tulio by his nightstand, placing something inside his sport coat.

"What's wrong?" Linda asked Tulio from the doorway.

Tulio quickly turned around and put his hands into his pockets. "Nothing," Tulio replied tensely. "Everything is perfect. I'll see you downstairs, I'm fixing something."

"You don't have to hide anything from me," Linda said, concerned. "Is there something wrong?"

"Remember how I told you about how my father left things for me?" Tulio inquired.

"Yes," Linda replied. "Was there something bad?"

"Not something bad," Tulio replied, "but something different from what I had expected."

"Let me see," Linda said walking over to Tulio. She reached into the right side of his sport coat and felt a large leather object, with cold steel inside of it. She gripped the steel object and pulled it out of the leather. She held it in her hands, in disbelief. In her hands was a Colt Model 1911 semi-automatic handgun, fully inscribed with 'France' etched on top of the slide.

"A week ago," Tulio explained as she stood there staring at it, "while visiting my father's home in Niteroi, I searched his attic, a place where I had never been allowed as long as my father was alive. Inside a shoebox were this gun and a photo. In the photo were my father, Big Billy, who I told you about, and another colleague of my father's, Richard. I only know their names from contact books that my father left me. Out of pure luck, I went to the police station and handed them this gun. There is one man who still serves on the police force from when my father was alive. His name is Andre. I handed him this gun and asked him if he knew anything about it. He was intrigued at how there were still brown spots on the gun, and he told me a story."

"What did he tell you?" Linda asked looking straight into Tulio's face.

"He told me that he was the one who had placed that gun into the shoebox," Tulio said looking straight at Linda. "He also told me more about my father's death."

"Tell me while we make our way to the café," Linda said, handing the gun back to Tulio. "Don't you need a license for that, though?"

"I have one," Tulio replied, placing it back into the holster. "I just bought one a few days ago."

Tulio followed Linda out of the room and down the stairs to the street. They headed to the side of the building to grab the motorcycle. Tulio had learned how to drive a motorcycle in the month since their adventure, and he was once again ready to show his skills. He had even bought a new motorcycle to make his riding experience better.

"I can do it this time!" Tulio said getting on while Linda sat behind him. He kick-started the motor, which started on the first kick, and he slowly made his way out onto the street, and down the street towards the café.

* * *

The dumb Red Macaw came to, moving his wings to try and stretch, but realized that he was tied. He looked up to see Nico and Kepler and he jumped from being so surprised.

"Wh-wh-What's wrong?" the macaw asked, looking tense and beginning to shiver with fright.

"We want to ask you a quick question," Kepler said in a low voice. "Is that alright by you?"

"Uh, uh, sure," the macaw replied, still looking scared, completely frightened at the size of Kepler.

"We seem to have an issue," Kepler went on. "Your friends have done some very bad things. We know that you weren't directly involved in hurting these friends of ours, but you were involved in the plan to hide it from everyone else. We would like to know how all of this came about. What drove you birds to perform such a heinous act of terrorism against an innocent group of birds?"

The macaw looked at Kepler with guilt and fright in his eyes and said nothing.

"Please don't make this hard," Kepler said, displaying a small piece of sharpened metal he was holding in his wing behind his back. "I don't want to have to harm someone just because they couldn't cooperate with a simple question."

The macaw trembled even more. "Wh-wh-wh-what do you want to know?" he managed to say through his trembling.

"How has all of this come to place?" Kepler asked again.

"We-we were contracted," the macaw managed to say. "We were asked to do a favor. Rough up the sanctuary a little bit, you know? Give those birds a piece of life in the real woods. You're making it sound like someone took something too far."

"From what we're hearing," Kepler said, "they did a little more than 'rough them up'."

"Those guys," the macaw continued as he calmed down, "are very rambunctious. Especially the single colored ones like us. It's in our genes, I guess. We get annoyed and then the next thing you know, you're beating the living daylights out of someone. I've seen it a million times. Not me, though, I'm a pacifist, man. They told me to watch the crowd there and make sure things went through before they left."

"What was the purpose of the crowd?" Kepler asked.

"Our explicit instructions were as follows," the red macaw listed. "Get all of our friends together, because we were finishing the club tonight. Send some of them down to help finish the place and keep the group on hold. When we felt a time was right, make a story up and get the guys out of the samba club. Tell a group of people about the new club and send a few guys with them to ensure that they stay until the job is completed. Once the group is at the club, rough up the sanctuary, and leave before anyone could get help."

"Did he give you a reason?" Kepler pressed.

"None of us ever dealt with him directly," the red macaw said. "He had a militia group providing us with all of the information. This guy's real secretive. He doesn't even trust any of us with his personal information."

"Well I can see why," Kepler joked. "Where can I find him?"

"The militia told us that he lives underneath the big bridge, east shore. You know the one that goes over the water."

"The Costa e Silva?" Kepler asked.

"That's the one," the red macaw replied. "I wouldn't recommend going there, though. That's one dangerous place. We've already had a couple guys go in there and never come back."

"Is this guy the top of the chain?" Kepler asked.

"Wait," Nico butted in. "Why would we need to know that?"

Kepler leaned in and whispered to Nico. "I'm trying to get as much info as I can out of this guy," he whispered. "Heaven forbid if anything happens to this guy for squawking, we'll already know everything."

He turned back to the Red Macaw, who was waiting to begin.

"As far as I know," the red macaw continued, "he's the top. I haven't heard anything else from anyone. Look, if you want more, go see the guy. You just need to know how to fight your way in."

"That's perfect," Kepler said as he untied the small rope. "You're free to go, kid. Enjoy yourself."

"You're just gonna let him go?" Nico asked. "Are you crazy?"

"Thank you!" the red macaw screamed with joy. He shook Kepler's wing and walked back into the club. Moments later, a loud scream was heard.

"I knew it," Kepler said, walking back into the club. There on the floor was the red macaw that they had just talked to, lying in a pool of his own blood, unresponsive. Closer to the entrance, Kipo was holding onto Remy.

"He's dead!" Nico yelled.

"Of course he is," Kepler said. "What did you expect? He squawked like a canary, no offense to you."

"Hey, none taken man," Nico said as they walked up to Kipo.

"This guy," Kipo said, "is one heck of a faker. He played the KO game the whole time you guys were out there. Poor buddy over there comes back in, and he gets up and stabs 'em. Man, what is with this city?"

"We got everything we need, Kipo," Kepler said. "We've got big plans tomorrow." Kepler reached down onto the ground and picked up the shard of metal and approached Remy.

"Screw you, old man!" Remy yelled, trying to shake free from Kipo. "You'll never get Peter! He's the most intelligent bird in the woods; smarter than you, smarter than me, and smarter than your other bozo blue friends!"

"You're Ronaldo's son, aren't you?" Kepler asked, putting the shard to Remy's neck.

"You bet your sorry arse!" Remy said. "My father should've killed you when he had the chance!"

"Oh woulda, coulda, shoulda," Kepler said in a taunting tone, "but he didn't. Say hello to your father for me."

Kepler slashed Remy's neck and Kipo let go of his body quickly.

"Easy there!" Kipo yelled. "You're gonna cut my feathers off!"

Remy fell to the ground and stopped moving.

"This is way too much death for me in one night!" Kipo said. "I can't even imagine what it looks like up in the sanctuary."

"As for the rest of you," Kepler said turning to the other restrained birds, "you've all just become casualties of war. Get them out of here. Take them to Christo and finish them. Quietly." The birds took off with the macaws in their talons, now knocked out. "We need to get this stuff cleaned up. Blood doesn't come off of concrete very well. You're gonna need bleach for this. At dawn tomorrow morning, we need a ceremony up at Christo for all of these casualties. Gentlemen, I'm afraid that these birds, along with our own actions tonight, have just started a war."

**The Shot Heard Round the World! You heard it, folks. We've got a war going on now! So many unanswered questions, and much more to be revealed in Chapter Five! Don't forget Should be out within a few days!**


	5. Chapter 5: Unanswered Questions Part II

Chapter 5

Tulio was cruising through the streets of Rio heading to the café. Once they were on the road, Linda continued their conversation from before they left.

"So," Linda said continuing. "What else really happened to Blu?"

"I do not know much about his early life," Tulio replied, "at least for the moment. For 15 years, my father had headed an organization that researched and tracked the endangered species of Brazil, which he had founded. My father's office at the headquarters downtown has files that have sat for as long as he has been dead. One of these days, I'm going to take a trip there and look through his files."

"Do you think we'll find things on Blu?" Linda asked.

"His records may not have been updated since Blu's birth," Tulio replied with uncertainty. "Do we even know how old he is?"

"When I visited a vet," Linda explained, "I asked him if he could determine how old Blu was."

"When was this?" Tulio asked.

"It was just a few weeks before you came, actually," Linda replied. "He told me that judging from his level of development, Blu was probably between 15 and 16 years old."

Tulio's eyes went wide and he had a moment of silence.

"What's wrong?" Linda asked, confused at what was up with Tulio.

"_Um milagre_," Tulio said partially out loud.

"What are you talking about?" Linda said shaking Tulio.

"It can't be," Tulio said. "My father was killed by drug smugglers during Carnival in 1996. The newspapers…"

His voice trailed off as his thoughts switched back into his mind, as they arrived at the café.

"Newspapers?" Linda asked getting off of the bike as Tulio sat on the bike.

"Please," Tulio said, "let's sit down first."

He got up off of the motorcycle and shut it off, and he and Linda walked over to the woman at the front of the café.

"Good evening," Tulio said to the woman. "We are with Bill, party of 3."

"He's right over there," the lady said, pointing to an older man in his 60's, enjoying an appetizer. Tulio and Linda walked up to Bill and stood next to him.

Bill noticed the shadow to his left and looked to his right, surprised to see Tulio.

"Tulio," Bill said, laughing a little, "You haven't changed a bit! Maybe taller, of course, but you look the same!" He stood up and shook Tulio's hand. "It's so good to see you again, my friend. Please, I ordered these for all of us to eat together. Please, sit down!"

Tulio and Linda sat down at the table and looked at Bill. "It's great to see you Bill," Tulio said. "How was your trip?"

"For my first flight in over 30 years," Bill joked, "not too bad! It's changed a bit since I was last on one, and since I was last here! You should have seen this city in the 1970's! Most of the city was favelas! The air was so choked with dirty exhaust fumes, you couldn't breathe sometimes! Your city has done an excellent job cleaning up its image! Christo looks better than ever up on top of the mountain!"

"Yes!" Tulio said. "So what brought you here to Rio?"

"That's a good question," Bill replied. "My old buddies and I from the service are having a, well, reunion of sorts. We recently met at a bar back in the states after it took me three years to find their numbers and arrange a meeting! It's hard for us old geezers to keep up in this modern world. My son just recently showed me how to use a computer!"

"So where are the rest of your friends?" Tulio asked.

"Well," Bill replied, "most of 'em aren't here yet. Their flights got delayed and they had family matters to take care of. There is one man, however, that should be joining us tonight."

"Who would that be?" Tulio wondered.

"Andre Salinas," Bill replied. "In fact, he called me yesterday telling me that you showed up at the office with a gun. Is that right?"

"Yes," Tulio replied. "I have it underneath my sport coat."

"Allow me to see it," Bill said. Tulio took the gun out of his holster and slid it across the table to Bill. He picked it up and proceeded to look at it. He looked funny at the bottom of it.

"Where is the magazine?" Bill asked, looking at the magazine port.

"I did not load it yet," Tulio replied. "The magazine is in my pocket. Here!" He pulled the magazine out of his pocket and handed it to Bill. Bill proceeded to look at the magazine. His face showed surprise.

"I haven't seen these in a long time," Bill said looking at the ammunition. "Jacketed Hollow Points: standard issue for the Military Police at Camp Panty."

"Camp Panty?" Linda said trying not to laugh.

Bill laughed. "Oh yes," he said. "That was the nickname we gave to our base here in Brazil. It was officially named Camp Avian, but because it was in the Pantanal, we dubbed it Camp Panty. Funny, right?"

"How did you build a military base in a protected wildlife area?" Linda asked, concerned.

"Linda," Tulio said to her, "Thirty years ago, there were no protective policies for endangered species in Brazil." He turned to Bill. "So Bill, what do you think of the gun?"

"I believe there's something I haven't told you about your father," Bill said with a sigh. "Actually, many things."

"What did you not tell me?" Tulio asked. "Start from the beginning."

"It was 1972," Bill explained. "It was the height of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. Both sides were making large advancements in rocket and airplane technology. For the United States, they wanted to jump ahead of the Soviets, and they knew just how to do it. How you ask? If there is one person in the world that got flying right, it was Mother Nature. For centuries, humans have been astounded by the ability of birds to fly under their own power. So what did people do to try and be like birds? They made crazy inventions to try and fly under their own strength, but found that they were too heavy and couldn't create enough lift and propulsion.

"Of course, the Wright Brothers changed all of that, realizing that you need more lift and more power to get off the ground. They didn't fly very far, but it was a start. Next you had the biplanes of World War One, which made soldiers look up the next time they ran across a battlefield. By World War Two, we were flying at over 400 miles per hour! Then the Germans realized something: the faster you could turn those propellers, the faster you could go, with limitations, of course. If you wanted to go faster, you needed either powerful engines or simpler parts. They took their ideas from their V2 Rockets, added a fast spinning, high efficiency turbine to move air, and put them on airplanes. They would have won the war, if it weren't for Hitler going into Russia, but that's a different story.

"They called it a jet plane, and it was revolutionary at the least. In the 1950's, as the Cold War Era began, jet planes replaced ones with propellers. They were crude, of course, but as time went on, they learned more. My father worked on some of these things back home. A problem arose, however. A primary component in flying is trying to keep G-forces down, making planes more versatile. Even our most powerful aircraft, the Blackbird, wasn't designed for high G-forces. The pilots black out and the planes almost break apart. The United States had an idea. If nature got it right first, why not try and learn a few things from them? This is where Camp Panty was born.

"President Nixon signed the bill in late 1971 to send a group of Special Operations soldiers, ornithologists, avian biologists, and rocket engineers to Brazil, home of the most biologically diverse region in the world."

"The Amazon Rainforst!" Tulio said.

"Of course," Bill continued. "As you said before, laws were very rare in the 1970's concerning conservation in Brazil. In reality, if you paid the government enough, you probably could have purchased the entire Pantanal. Now, the Americans went to the Brazilians and requested that they be granted an area of the Pantanal for the right price. Of course, the government accepted, and signed the deed for a hundred acre facility near the isolated town of Carauari in the province of Amazonas. The townspeople there were told it was classified government business and that it would not interfere with their daily lives.

"So we got down there and got flown to Rio first, because they claimed that we needed 'specimens' to use in flight experiments. Of course, it isn't polite for government sponsored people to travel to another country and not get to meet the people in charge."

"This must have been where you met my father," Tulio said.

"That is correct," Bill said. "We visited the parliament first, where I first met your father. I was surprised at his excellent knowledge of the English language, and he invited me for a drink. I told him after our tour was finished of the city, I would gladly join him for a drink. We had a one night layover before we traveled to the purchased land.

"So after the tour your father explained to me that he was more than a politician. He was also a member of the Rio police force."

Tulio's eyes went wide, realizing something that his father had hidden from him by using his political and scientist jobs as a cover. Tulio didn't like where this was going, and he was afraid that he would learn that he was lied to by someone else along the line.

"I know now it was true because of this gun that you have handed me here." He picked the gun up. "Your police force here in Rio was using outdated 9mm weapons from World War Two. As a secret gift from us to them, we provided them with brand new standard U.S. issue .45 caliber Colts. I gave your father a massive crate of ammunition, which I presume you've found already."

"I found that in his old office at the BICES office," Tulio told him.

"It matches the ammunition in this magazine," Bill pointed to the bullets. So, I told your father afterwards that we needed birds for our study at the base. Your father knew just what to do. He told me about the illegal trade out of the city, and how it was so large and so corrupted that you could walk down to any market in the city and nearly any vendor was selling exotic birds or other animals. So, he took me on a trip to one of the biggest markets in the city in Ipanema. In fact, right where it is today, there's a massive red beacon up on top of one of the buildings. They just put it up today! I wonder what it's for.

"But anyways, you father asked me what we wanted in our collection. I told him to give me the most beautiful, powerful, and intelligent bird that he knew of. He directed me to one named Marcel Piquet. He was a French immigrant that had married a Brazilian woman, and they were expecting a child. Your father, off duty and posing as a scumbag, asked for the rarest, best thing they had, and they gave him two choices: he had a group of Blue Macaws, and a group of Hyacinth Macaws."

Through Linda's and Tulio's minds ran thoughts of Blu. They may have been related to them in some way, and were likely sold and killed in the trade. Tulio felt heartbroken inside and Linda nearly shed tears.

"We chose the Hyacinth Macaws because they were much bigger birds," Bill continued to speak. "The cost us thousands of dollars each, but we got what we needed. The main members of the group each got one to name and take care of. We agreed that we should name them something professional; people who were significant to history. Mine was named Kepler, Richard chose Da Vinci, Chris chose Newton, your father chose Einstein, and we needed the fifth one to be named, so we went to Andre at the station. He picked Plato."

"That's one interesting group of names," Tulio said, laughing a little.

Bill laughed too. "We were just having a little fun with it," he said. "So your father was not only a politician and a police officer, but he was also an ornithologist."

"That is right!" Tulio said.

"We're glad we found him," Bill continued, "because he decided to accompany us to the base and take a small leave from work to help us learn about these birds. So the next morning we took off and headed for the town. It wasn't long before our group of planes touched down and we unloaded concrete and equipment and started to build ourselves a base, complete with a runway and a concrete scientific facility with state of the art equipment. For a little while, they were testing an SR-71 Blackbird at our base! That thing was incredible, let me tell you. So, after about seven years of work at the base, in early '79, we were informed by the Department of Defense that our budget had been cut to a point that we would no longer be able to stay at the base. Of course, the guys weren't happy, including me. We were told we had 24 hours to load as much stuff onto the planes as we could, and we had to head back to the states. In the weirdest of events, however, something strange happened to us the day we were packing."

"What happened?" Tulio asked.

"A couple of our guys headed into the town to pick up some local souvenirs, and on the way back, well, for lack of a better term, we were attacked."

Tulio's eyes opened wide and he became interested. "What happened?" Tulio asked with surprise.

"Before I knew it," Bill explained, "I was being attacked by a group of birds."

"What birds?" Tulio asked. "The ones you bought?"

"Not them," Bill said, "but rather a collection of other various colored birds. We headed to the armory to grab our guns and handle the problem. When we showed up with the guns, the birds took off and we opened fire, and we hit quite a few of them. But we hit something that we didn't want to hit."

"What did you hit?" Tulio asked again.

"Da Vinci was in the crossfire," Bill told him. "He was hit in the right wing and in his skull. By some miracle, he survived, and when we had taken the supplies back to the states, President Carter wanted to recognize him by giving him new life. He personally paid for a project to make this bird, well, a cyborg in ways."

"Like part bird, part robot?" Tulio wondered.

"Exactly like that," Bill replied. "The rest of the birds took off, never to be seen again. Believe it or not, Richie still owns Da Vinci, but he never answers to Da Vinci, he tells me."

"Well what does he answer to?" Tulio once again asked.

"He only responds to Leo now," Bill said. "Richie should be bringing him here in just a few weeks! So, your father, he went back to Rio after we left, but we stayed in touch through the mail and by phone on occasion. Just a couple of years after we left, he founded the Conservancy here in town and organized the Brazilian Institute for the Conservation of Endangered Species, who aided the first people who formed the IUCN in raising awareness about endangered species. Everything was great, until February 16th, 1996. I'll remember that day forever."

Tulio and Linda leaned in and listened closer to Bill.

"I got an email from your father. He told me that things were well with you and your mother. He told me that you guys didn't know it, but he was in the midst of cracking one of the largest animal smuggling rings in Rio history. In the center of the ring was none other than Marcel Piquet, who now had his son, Marcel Jr., to help him out. Your father had infiltrated all of the way up his ranks, so far up that he took orders directly from Marcel himself. Your father was just moments away the next day from everything he needed to throw Marcel and his smuggling ring down the drain. The police were designated to infiltrate their center of operations at 10 A.M. on February 17th, 1996."

Tulio began to shed a tear, knowing that there was only one direction that this conversation was heading in.

"To his complete and utter surprise and dismay, when he opened the front door at 10 A.M. and pulled his gun, this gun, on Marcel, he found that no one was there. Not a single police officer had showed up outside. Your father, however, was never annoyed by changes in plans, and from what I see here on this gun, medium velocity spatter, your father pulled this trigger and hit Marcel. With you and your mother and his mind, he pulled this trigger, knowing he would never come home. Marcel's son was already carrying a medium caliber weapon, because they were on their way to make an exchange that morning. Your father had no chance, but he was able to kill Marcel and get one shot off into his son before he died. Marcel's son was believed to be hit in the lower abdomen or leg, because he lost a lot of blood."

Tulio was in tears and Linda was holding onto his left hand, trying to comfort him. "Why didn't the police show up?" Tulio asked.

"Over the past 15 years," Bill said, "there have been a lot of theories, newspaper articles, and television stories about the subject, but there's one theory that I never looked past. It's believed by many that your father was the victim of a rat in the police force."

"Who would do such a thing?" Linda said.

"That's what my friends and I have been trying to figure out for as long as your father has been dead," Bill told Tulio. "I came here to tell you everything you never knew about his story. You do understand that he had to lie to you and your mother to protect you, right?"

"Yes," Tulio said, sniffling. "I understand now."

"Keep this in your holster," Bill said handing the gun back to Tulio. "You don't want too many people to know that you're carrying. Gun laws are strict in Brazil, so how did you get that permit?"

"My father's past helped me get one," Tulio replied, "though I didn't realize it until now." He put the gun back into his holster.

"Good," Bill said with a smile. A phone rang in someone's pocket. Bill reached down and pulled the phone out of his pocket. He answered it.

"Hello?" Bill said. After a few moments, his eyes went wide and his mouth dropped.

"What is wrong?" Tulio asked, concerned.

"Yes, I understand," Bill closed his eyes and bowed his head, still on the phone. "Tell Anne that I will be back in time for the service. Thank you, bye." He opened his eyes and turned his head to Tulio, his eyes gleaming from being near tears. "It's Richie. He's been murdered."

Tulio and Linda were in disbelief. They were at a loss for words considering the story that Bill had just told them, only to end in a phone call telling them of a beloved friend and colleague becoming the victim of a cold-hearted killer. Bill couldn't hold back the tears his heart wanted to shed for an important friend lost.

"What can we do?" Tulio asked.

"There's nothing you can do," Bill replied, "and neither can I. I'm afraid my stay here in Rio is going to be cut short. His funeral is in two days and it would be an insult to his wife and Chris if I didn't make my best effort to attend. They updated my ticket for me. I'm leaving tomorrow morning. I'll stop by your home before my flight leaves. I'm terribly sorry, but I think I'm going to have to go. It gets hard to lose people you've known for so long when you're older, and in the shape that I'm in, it's just not good for me overall."

"Don't be sorry," Tulio said, getting up as Bill did. He put his hand on his shoulder. "Do what you have to do."

"That means a lot to me," Bill said, managing a smile through his tears. "I'll stop by tomorrow morning, bright and early."

"Maybe you should sleep in and get some rest," Tulio told him. "You can contact me so many other ways."

"I insist," Bill said. "Thank you for thinking of me though." He held out his hand, and Tulio shook it. Linda also shook his hand. He raised and lowered his hat to them and he walked out of the café to the street, where he fetched a cab. Linda and Tulio watched as the cab took off down the street.

"Well," Tulio said to Linda, "we didn't get a romantic dinner like we really wanted, but I learned a lot from an old friend. I feel more at peace now."

"But what about your mother?" Linda asked. "Where is she now?"

"My mother?" Tulio said. "She lives in Sao Paulo now. She left to forget about my father, but I stayed here to continue my father's work. So, I studied ornithology and became supervisor of the Conservatory. I still have to go back and check out my father's office at BICES."

"Save it for another day," Linda said. "Let's go home and watch a movie or relax."

"I guess we can do that," Tulio said smiling. They were about to pay for the food when they realized that Bill had already paid for the appetizer, so they left the café and turned the corner to grab the bike.

There were few lights on this street, and as Tulio and Linda approached the bike, they caught a glimpse of a man standing just 20 feet away from them, wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the hood up. They stopped and squinted as they tried to see who it was through the dim light. For just a moment, light from a nearby streetlight gleamed off of a metallic object in the man's hand, and images flashed through Tulio's mind of his father being shot by Marcel's son. He needed to quickly decide his actions before the man came to harm him, or worse, Linda.

* * *

**Break in the action! Sorry guys, but this is out of my hands now. Tulio needs to make a decision here, but I can't do this alone. I need you, the readers, to vote on what happens! Tulio can let his vengeance for his father's death get the best of him, or he can try to find a way to set his vengeance aside, and take this man alive. Leave your vote in a review! I would sincerely appreciate every vote I can get, because I want to see what you guys think. I can't write this story until you, the readers, vote! As always, questions? Comments? Concerns? PM me or leave a review. I will begin writing Chapter 6 when i get at least 7 votes! **


	6. Chapter 6: Wrong Place, Right Time

Chapter 6

Luiz never disappeared from the events of his friends, but rather his night took an unexpected turn.

Luiz hopped into the back of the truck near his home, and it headed down the hill back towards the city. He took a seat in the back of the truck and gazed around him. He looked down on the glowing lights of the city below him, where humans were carrying on with their nighttime activities. He looked up into the sky at the millions of stars that shone light down onto the earth. He also stared at Christo Redentor and the surrounding forest, knowing that his friends were probably enjoying themselves back at home, except for Nico and Pedro, of course.

The truck moved rather slowly, and Luiz became tired from staring at the night sky. Overwhelmed by sleepiness, he curled up into a ball and dozed off in the back of the pickup truck.

Forty five minutes later, Luiz woke in the back of the truck to the sound of voices. He opened his eyes and looked around. The truck was parked in a concrete lot. Storage containers and large cranes were visible just a few hundred yards away. Luiz was at the Port of Rio, within short walking distance from the harbor and the docks. He was able to hear a conversation going on between two people, going on just a few yards away from him.

"We are not ready yet," a younger man said in a Brazilian accent. "Our chances of a worthwhile attack now would be pointless. We need more time, we need more men, and we need more victims."

"No one ever gave you a time constraint," the second man said in another accent, who sounded older and slightly agitated. "You have all the time that you need to see this through and prepare. Now, did you find what you went up to the forest for? That's restricted land. You could be arrested for going on that property!"

"I'm sorry, sir!" the first man pleaded. "I got him. He's in the front seat in a cage. He's severely injured, so I gave him a sedative to help him rest. Your nephew and I spoke on the phone just yesterday. He told me where to find him. Sure enough, he was resting in the plane wreck. Apparently the police have not yet investigated the incident."

"I was put in charge of dealing with the case," the second man said. "I shredded all of the documents and burned them at home. The rest of the station forgot about the incident. Things are working quite well, my friend. Soon enough, we will have our time to strike. I'm sure your new friend has already made plans on his own. My nephew tells me that he's the most intelligent thing in the forest. He'll build an army for us in his world, and we must return the favor. Now, you know your role. Take him with you to the United States. Follow my instructions that I have left for you in your luggage. Meet the men in New York City, and release him into the city. He'll come back in a matter of days. Do not leave without him. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir," the first man replied."

"Good," the second man said. "Now, get in the truck. I will take you to the airport. I have friends to meet tonight and I can't be late. I have loose ends to take care of."

The two men opened the doors of the truck and got in. They started the truck and drove off, back into the city. The back window of the truck's cab was open, so Luiz kept low and listened to their conversation again.

"Is your nephew still locked up?" The first man asked.

"Yes," the second man replied, "along with his friends. That's about to change in the next 15 minutes, however."

"What are you talking about?" the first man asked, puzzled and surprised.

"They're accompanying you to America," the second man replied. "I need them to make sure our little friend here doesn't run away on you."

"But they're in prison!" the first man said. "Just because you have a high stature doesn't mean you can just walk in there and ask the guards to release prisoners!"

"Who ever said I was asking anyone to do anything?" the second man said. "I forgot to tell you. Check under the seat. You might like what you find."

A few seconds went by before the first man said something.

"Sacre Bleu!" the first man yelled. "I didn't know you had one of these down at the station!"

"We don't," the second man said. "That one came here from my old friends back in America. They're much easier to obtain in America as a citizen than you can here as law enforcement!"

"But you're not seriously going to—

"—are you on my side or not?" The second man interrupted the first man in anger.

"I'm on your side, sir," the first man said, afraid.

"Good," the second man said. "Now, did you bring the coats like I requested?"

"They're in the tailgate box, sir," the first man said.

"Get them out of the back when we stop at the prison," the second man said.

Oh, shoot, Luiz thought to himself. I gotta get out of this thing before they see me!

Within 15 minutes, the truck arrived at the prison, an overcrowded prison in a Rio suburb known as Polinter Prison. Luiz quickly jumped out of the truck before the two men got out. Luiz hid under the truck.

The two men got out and made their way to the back of the truck, and the first man pulled the large coats and ski masks out of the tailgate box.

"Why do we need these again?" the first man asked.

"You'll thank me later," the second man replied. "Just put them on."

The two put the coats and ski masks on and walked away from the truck, with a large gun in one of their hands. Luiz jumped back into the truck bed and lay down, afraid.

It seemed like hours went by. Seconds felt like minutes. Luiz looked over the side of the truck bed and saw small flashes of light from inside of the small prison. After the lights stopped, a massive cheer could be heard from inside. Luiz continued to look and waited.

The front doors of the prison flew open and a large group of yelling men came running out. Luiz crouched back down into the truck bed and waited for what was next.

There were vehicles all over the lot, and men started breaking into them and hotwiring them. The same two men from before sprinted back to the truck, opened the doors, and started the truck. They waited for a moment as a police vehicle from the lot started up and its lights and siren turned on. The police car took the lead, followed by the pickup truck.

At this point, Luiz was near freaking out. He didn't where he was, where he was going, or what would happen to him. He lay down in the truck bed and tried to stay calm.

Five minutes later, the truck came to a stop at the Rio Airport. The police car stopped in front of them. Three men got out of the police car, and Luiz had no idea who they were. The first man also got out of the pickup truck and was about to join them when the second man rolled down the window.

"You're not getting on any plane without tickets, luggage, and passports!" the second man called to the first. The first man turned around and grabbed them without saying a word, and proceeded to turn around and join his friends as they walked into the airport. As they walked away, Luiz saw some animal in a cage being carried by the first man, but he couldn't make out what it was.

"Enjoy your new identities, you slime," the second man said to himself as he drove away from the airport.

It was another ten minutes before the truck stopped again. This time, the truck was on a small Rio street, where it parked on the side of the street. The man inside got out and ditched his clothes in the back by throwing them in blindly. They missed Luiz, but Luiz almost got sick and threw up. The clothes stunk like iron. He jumped out of the truck bed to avoid being next to the smell, and at the same time, he looked around to scan his surroundings.

Two loud bangs scared Luiz to death. They were just around the corner. Luiz stood in the middle of the street, afraid to move. A figure rounded the corner. Luiz stared at them; he couldn't believe who it was.

* * *

**Sorry I'm late! I was awaiting some more votes for the next chapter, but I decided to fill in Luiz's story with the time that I had. This is to keep you guys busy while I work on the next part! Your results are in! I got three votes for Tulio to spare the man, and none for killing him. Chapter 7 will be out sometime this week! Because of the limited time I now have to write, upcoming chapters will be slightly shorter than most of my chapters have been. Thank you to the three who voted!**


	7. Chapter 7: Getting Out of Hand

Chapter 7

Tulio had made up his mind about this man. He wanted this man to die.

You dare come near me and my wife? He thought to himself. Suffer then.

Tulio whipped the pistol out of his holster so fast he probably would've beaten Wyatt Earp in the shootout at OK Corral. Running on pure adrenaline, Tulio aimed the gun quickly and pulled the trigger three times, two of which were hits. Both struck the assailant in the left leg, and the man went down, yelling.

"AH!" the man shrieked as he was hit by heavy lead. He fell to the ground like a rock. Nearby, police sirens wailed, coming closer to the scene.

Tulio stood and stared at the man, who had fallen into the light of a nearby streetlight. Tulio dropped the gun to the ground and ran to the man and knelt beside him. Linda ran down the street out of fright from the gun, and she rounded the corner where the man's truck had been. She looked down the street, and gazed into the eyes of Luiz sitting in the middle of the street.

Luiz was as surprised as she was. He looked oddly at her for a moment, and nodded to Linda. She became surprised and turned around and went back to Tulio.

"Well at least I did something to benefit someone tonight," Luiz muttered to himself as he began walking down the street in the opposite direction. He no longer had any interest in doing anything for the night.

He walked down a side street that would take him directly to Botafogo Beach. He felt rather lonely, disappointed by the fact that he wasn't able to enjoy a nice night with his friends. He would have had to walk over a mile to Ipanema, and even then, he still wouldn't have reached the samba club.

He crossed the street and made his way onto the beach. Not many people were on the beach now, giving Luiz an opportunity to sit and think about his life and recent events. He took a seat on the beach and thought.

"All my friends got it so much better than me," Luiz muttered to himself. "They got love, they got so much company, and dang, they got wings! I don't have any of that stuff." He lowered his head and closed his eyes. "I'm so lonely." He sniffled and shed a tear that ran down his face and dripped onto the sand, leaving a small spot of wet sand where it landed. He lay down and closed his eyes.

Back on the street by the café, Tulio and Linda knelt beside the man on the ground. Tulio knew exactly who it was.

"Andre?" Tulio said to the man, completely surprised.

"This part of town," the man said through short breaths, "is not a very safe one. Protection is necessary." He covered his wounds with his hands. Moments later, a police car, a black car similar to the police car, and an ambulance with sirens blazing pulled up to them in the street. Behind them, a taxi cab was following, and it stopped behind the police cars. Police officers got out of one car, men in suits got out of the black car, and two paramedics brought a stretcher over to Andre.

"What happened here?" one of the officers asked coming up to them. Another officer found the gun and marked it with bright yellow tape. "Chief Salinas! Are you alright?

Tulio and Linda were speechless, but they didn't have to say anything, because Andre replied first.

"I made a bad choice, Carlos," Andre said through deep breaths. "It's not smart to carry a knife in middle of the city. I should have known better."

"Don't listen to anything he says! He's a liar!" A voice yelled from behind them. Most of the people there turned around the see Bill walking toward them, holding a gun at Andre.

"Billy?" Andre yelled in complete surprise to see him. Tulio and Linda were surprised as well, considering that they had thought Billy had to leave to see Richard's funeral.

"You're a fool, Andre," Billy said. "Don't even think about it. Tulio, check his coat pockets."

Tulio opened his coat and saw a bulge in one of the inner pockets. Tulio unzipped it and pulled out another Colt M1911 that looked exactly like his. Tulio's eyes widened.

"I'm always a step ahead of you, Andre," Billy said, still pointing a gun at him. "William Carter, CIA. You're under arrest."

"Oh are you now?" Andre said evilly. "You're steps ahead of me?" He laughed as paramedics picked him up and put him on a stretcher. They tied him down and gave him sedatives to knock him out. He was placed into the ambulance and the paramedics closed the doors, got in, and drove to the hospital with a police car in tow.

"You're an agent?" Tulio asked Bill, confused.

"I didn't want to say anything until the operation was over," Bill explained, "but yes. I am a CIA agent, along with my two friends here. These are two of my most trusted men from back in the states." He pointed at the men, and they nodded their heads. "There are some things that you don't know about Andre that I should have told you before."

Tulio and Linda got up off of the ground and they continued to look at Bill. "What did you not tell us?" While they were talking to Bill, a call came in to one of Bill's friends, where he answered it and talked.

"This city is in worse shape than you think," Bill continued. "The entire Rio de Janeiro police force has some serious problems, and Andre is the focal point of this issue. A few months ago, I read an article from a Rio newspaper about the oldest man on the police force being the only man left from the past generation of police officers. After your father's death, the entire city wanted answers about why the police never responded to the call that they had known about months in advance. The senior members of the police force, which at that time did not include Andre, were questioned about possible cover-ups involving someone having it in for your father. Their recorded statements were kept in the senior office at the police station. A week ago, a couple of my Brazilian insiders posed as police officers and demanded access to those files. They were able to get one, and they returned for more, the rest of them were destroyed. They were able to retrieve the most important one, however."

"What did you find?" Tulio wondered.

"It was a recorded statement from former Police Chief Felipe Dias," Bill said. "He outright refused to give any information whatsoever about anything. They knew that someone in the police force had tipped Marcel off, but they refused to say who it was. Every senior member of the police force resigned within a week. That put Andre in charge. There have been gaps in the police records since Andre became chief. I only know this because my friends were there searching through the archives. There are things that aren't recorded for days at a time."

"So what are you trying to say?" Tulio asked.

"It is my firm belief," Bill said, "based on the plethora of information and evidence that I have gathered, Andre Salinas is the man that ratted your father out to Marcel. I imagine that he was able to convince the senior members of the police force that your father could handle this operation on his own, and that it wasn't worth sacrificing men in an ambush."

"Bill," one of Bill's agent friends said with stress, "we have a problem here, sir."

"What's the problem?" Bill turned around and asked.

"We've just been contacted by Washington," the second agent replied. "They've been advised to pass this information onto us, sir. Agents in the Brazilian Intelligence Agency have been reviewing satellite surveillance feeds over northern Rio, and they've got suspicious activity."

"What suspicious activity?" Bill asked.

"They've been checking out movement over by a prison just north of town called Polinter Prison," the agent continued. "You might want to have a look at this."

Bill, Tulio, and Linda ran over to the car and looked at a computer screen. It was an overhead shot of a pickup truck driving up to this prison, with two men getting out and walking to the back of the truck. Luiz was visible in the video.

"Wait," Linda said. "That dog, I just saw that dog on the street over there!"

"Connor," Bill said to one of his agents. "Go with Linda to where she found the dog. Check it out."

"Yes, sir," Connor said. "Miss, please show me where you found the dog."

Linda quickly walked down the street and around the corner to where the dog was.

"That looks like the truck from the video," Agent Connor said walking over to the truck. He opened the driver side door and peered inside. Clothes were lying on the seat. The entire truck smelled of blood.

"Oh man," Connor said coughing as he shut the door. "We're going to need to fly more agents in. This is getting way out of hand."

Back at the car, Tulio, Bill, and the other agent continued to watch the video as Linda and Agent Connor came back to the car.

"We've got a truck on the next street over," Agent Connor said to Bill. "There are two bloody jackets inside. Andre might have been involved in the Polinter prison break."

"Andre released 150 hardened criminals back into the streets," Bill said under his breath. "What is this guy planning?"

"We should probably get to the hospital," Agent Connor said. "We can question him there."

Bill paused for a moment and looked out into the street. "He's not gonna be there," he said again under his breath.

"Why not?" Tulio asked.

"Because I called the police department!" Bill yelled in anger as he threw his hat onto the ground. "How could I have been so stupid? His entire police force is corrupted! The moment they saw him on the ground they knew that he wouldn't be going to the hospital! I called 911 the moment I got into that cab and told them there was a shooting outside of the café. The city has multiple private medical centers; he could be at any of them!"

"Did you lie about Richard too?" Tulio asked Bill. "You seem to be lying about everything!"

"There were different things that I could only tell you at certain points in time," Bill said sternly to Tulio. "Richard is really dead! That wasn't part of the plan for him to die! I would've had to leave at the same time that I did, even if he wasn't actually dead! This man has been evading the CIA for the past 15 years, and I had him right on the street in front of me, and I let him go!" He sighed and looked down at the ground as he pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and lit up. "Every lead we get brings us to a dead end."

"You have to take the things you have and look at them closely," Tulio said. "You might be overlooking something."

"What am I overlooking?" Bill wondered.

"Make a timeline," Tulio suggested. "Track what he's done if you have enough information to do so."

"We can definitely do that!" Bill said. "That's not what I'm concerned about right now, though."

"What are you concerned about then?" Tulio asked.

"I have uncovered just about everything," Bill explained. "I found his introduction into the police force, his records, I exposed his cover-ups, I know he's involved in your father's death, and I know that he just let 150 criminals out of prison, by force, apparently. Connor! Who was checked into that prison?"

Connor pulled up records on the computer from the Brazilian Department of Justice, and scanned the names quickly.

"No, no, no," Agent Connor said as he went through the names. "Most of the criminals in this prison are petty thieves and gang related thugs. There are three people on here that stand out from the rest, however."

"Who are they?" Bill got interested as he looked at the screen.

"These guys," Connor said as he pulled up a photo on the screen, "are not affiliated with any gang and are not petty thieves." The photo revealed three men: one tall, thin African American with an afro, a shorter, fatter man of Brazilian descent, and a white, tall, thin and boney man of European descent. Bill became surprised.

"I know him," Bill said as he pointed to the thin white man in the photo.

"You should know him," Conner assured Bill. He pulled his record up. "Marcel Piquet, Jr. was arrested on the second day of Carnival just this year. He was charged with trespassing, violating ICUN protocols with the treatment of animals, and he was charged with animal smuggling against ICUN protocols, the most prolific of the charges, but the judge threw it away. Just a note, however. The judge that presided over the case was a former police officer that was not involved directly with the scandal with Tulio's father."

"Andre has some kind of partnership with animal smugglers?" Bill sounded surprised. "Wait, why exactly was the Intelligence Agency following their truck in the first place?"

"That truck," Agent Connor continued, "was driving on government owned property just north of the sanctuary. While they were observing, they noticed that underneath the canopy of trees was a plane that had crashed. They sent some guys there after the truck left and found that the plane was an SC7 Skyvan that was registered to Marcel Piquet Sr. They couldn't see what they took from the plane, so they decided to follow the truck."

"When was this?" Bill asked.

"This was within the hour, sir," Connor replied. "Now, they tracked the truck to the port just before the Costa e Silva Bridge. A man met another man at the docks, who we now know is Andre, they talked for a few minutes, and they both got in and drove to the prison. They got out, went into the prison, and killed the five security guards on duty. They proceeded to release the prisoners from their cells. There were vans in the parking lot that the men piled into and drove away in. However, three men, which were probably these three guys from the smuggling ring, drove in another car with the pickup truck to the airport, where they got out, along with another man in the pickup truck."

"So Andre has a friend," Bill said.

"He probably has thousands of friends," Connor continued. "I don't understand what this guy is trying to accomplish here. Steal things from plane wreckage? Break people out of prison and put them on a plane? Then come to a restaurant, and unexpectedly get shot?"

"I set this whole dinner up as a way to get Andre," Bill explained. "How would I have known that it was on the day that he was putting some kind of plot together? He apparently has something against France and Tulio, because there's no doubt in my mind that he was coming here to kill us. Tulio, it's a good thing you shot him, because if you didn't, you might not be alive right now."

"So put these pieces together," Tulio said. "He ratted my father out, and he released Marcel's son from prison. Why?"

"Maybe he just wants to keep their bird smuggling trade alive," Conner said.

"That might be true," Bill said, "but I think that there's more involved than that. They got on a plane. Who knows where they're going? They probably have passports with new names because Andre most likely has 'moles' in every institute in Brazil. Guys, I'm gonna be completely honest with you here. I think we're seeing the first stages of a war here, and if we don't put more pieces of this puzzle together faster, I'm afraid it's going to be one big catastrophe.

"We'll need to contact people," Conner said. "I mean a lot of people. We need the government, we need the intelligence agencies, and I'll say it, we need the army for this!"

"The last thing we need is a war," Bill warned Conner. "We need to keep our minds set straight here. We're not looking for revenge; we're looking for peace. I'm not digging two graves, Conner."

Out of nowhere, an explosion rocked the street. The explosion was deafening to everyone standing at the car, and they covered their ears and head to avoid getting hurt by the blast. Shaken up, Tulio and Bill ran to the next street over, but not before Bill picked his hat up off of the ground. They went to where the pickup truck had been. To their dismay, the pickup truck was now a massive flaming pile of scrap metal.

"That old truck was a ticking time bomb!" Tulio said.

"Andre was right, Tulio," Bill said with a sigh as he placed his hat back on top of his head. "Who were we to think that we were a step ahead of him? More like he's about five steps ahead of us."

* * *

**This plot is getting really juicy, if I do say so myself! Andre is cooking up quite a storm in the human world, and the attack on the sanctuary is brewing a war in the bird world! Grab some more popcorn people! Chapter Eight will be out soon!**


	8. Chapter 8: I Don't Even Know You Part I

Chapter 8

After yet another peaceful rest, Luiz slowly opened his eyes and gazed down the beach at the line of streetlights. The beaches seemed to be getting quieter and quieter by the minute, at least until the explosion rocked the city.

The explosion was so loud and resonant that it brought Luiz to his feet from surprise. His eyes widened as he looked around and saw the massive cloud of smoke that showed up from where he had been earlier.

"It's just not my night," Luiz said out loud to himself. "Maybe it would be best if I just went home."

But how could he get home? Luiz was a few miles from home. It would take him most of the night to go back home. Luiz made a decision: he was going to set his course towards the samba club. It was just a couple of miles away, so he figured that it would be faster to go to the samba club.

"Maybe the next truck I'll find won't have some psychotic moron behind the wheel," Luiz said again to himself. He walked off of the beach to the street, where a lone truck was stopped at a light.

"My cue!" Luiz said to himself as he hopped into the back of the truck. The truck continued down the street towards Ipanema. Luiz looked out of the side of the truck bed as the truck went, and he got excited that he would actually get to see his friends tonight after all.

About 15 minutes later, the truck had made its way to Ipanema beach, and Luiz jumped out of the truck at a streetlight and made the short trek away from the beach to the market. He got there and found the samba club rebuilt, and he made his way into the market and to the front of the club. He squeezed his way in the front entrance.

"What's up, everybody?" Luiz yelled as he entered the club. There was a problem, though. No one was in the club. All Luiz saw was an empty club, with a few blood drops on the floor.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Luiz yelled. "I missed the party! Yeah, I'm so done with this!" He ran back outside of the club. This time, there were no pickup trucks to take Luiz anywhere.

"Looks like I'm walking," Luiz said to himself as he hung his head low and walked out of the market.

"Hey!" a voice yelled from above. Luiz looked up, trying to see who it was. "Who are you, kid?" Luiz had no idea who it was.

* * *

"A war?" Nico yelled in protest. "We can't have a war! What makes you think there'll be a war?"

"They sent their message to us," Kepler said, "and this is our message to them. Now come on, guys. They need our help up at the sanctuary. Ivan can't do everything on his own."

"You guys go," Kipo said. "I'll get this mess cleaned up, and I'll be up a few minutes after you."

"Right," Kepler said. "Guys, let's go. We never know what we're gonna find up there."

Kepler took flight, followed by Nico and Pedro. Kipo went over to the bar and retrieved a small container that read "BLEACH" on it. He dumped the contents onto the two major blood pools and gave them time to soak in. He grabbed a cloth and wiped the mixture off of the ground. He was surprised to see it come off perfectly.

"Now I have to get rid of these bodies!" Kipo said in disgust. "Ugh!"

Kipo picked up the lifeless bodies of Remy and his less intelligent friend and carried them out of the club. A couple of blood drops dripped down onto the concrete once more, unknown to Kipo. He took off towards Christo to join his friends in preparing the bodies for the ceremony.

While everyone was in the air, the explosion rocked the area just north of them. The sound was drowned out slightly by the extent of city noise, but the pressure wave made its presence known ever so slightly.

"What was that?" Kepler said feeling the pressure wave. "Look, over there! Something just blew up."

"Today's just been an odd day, Kep," Nico told Kepler. "Way too many things on my mind right now."

"You need a vacation!" Kepler said. "I've been taking one for almost the past 35 years! The rest of the guys, once they hear about this, they're all gonna want to come out of retirement."

"When will we expect to see them?" Nico asked.

"I'll go wake their lazy tail feathers up tomorrow morning. All we ever do is sleep really; not much to get out of bed for when you're older, Nico! You'll find that out soon enough."

"I hope I don't," Nico said as they got ever closer to the sanctuary.

When they finally arrived, there was actually peacefulness in the air for once. Some small songbirds were singing tunes, and Ivan was helping someone somewhere. Everything changed when they began to pass by Blu's tree. Out of the tree flew Blu and Jewel, but it wasn't a jubilant encounter.

"Get away from me, you freak!" Jewel yelled in an angry tone, flying away from the tree in a hurry. Blu was right behind her.

"Jewel!" Blu pleaded. "Just wait up and listen to me!"

"Is that the friend that you wanted me to meet?" Kepler asked, looking awkwardly at the two bickering at each other through the air.

"Well yeah," Nico replied, "but they're never like that."

"This is just one weird place to live," Kepler said, flying away from the sanctuary.

"Wait!" Nico called. "Where are you going?"

"Checking on Kipo's work," Kepler replied. By the time he replied, he was already almost out of earshot. Nico sighed and looked back towards Blu and Jewel. "Hey guys!" he called to them flying towards them. "Stop fighting! What's the problem now?"

Kepler quickly made his way back to the club. When we got there, he found a dog walking out of the market with his head down.

"Hey!" Kepler yelled as he was descending to the ground. The dog looked up at him to try and see who it was. "Who are you, kid?"

"Is that you, Blu?" the dog asked.

"I think you've got me confused with your smaller, lighter colored friend," Kepler said to the dog as he landed in front of him. "The name's Kepler, famous German astronomer and NASA spacecraft. Who might you be, sir?"

"Uh," Luiz felt awkward, "the name's Luiz. Um, bulldog that drools a lot?"

Kepler couldn't hold back from laughing. "Funny, kid," Kepler said. "I think your friend Blu is up in the sanctuary, along with everyone else."

"But why aren't Nico and Pedro down here at the samba club?" Luiz asked. "They're always here on nights like this."

"There've been a few recent events that changed that tonight," Kepler explained. "We've had an incident in the forest involving quite a few birds, and we're trying to deal with the situation appropriately. Now, have you seen Kipo?"

"I was the only one here when I showed up," Luiz replied. "Maybe he left without you. That's been the highlight of my day so far. I've seen way too many crazy things tonight! You've gotta warn the others for me!"

"Easy, bloodhound," Kepler said. "One priority at a time here, bud."

As they were talking, Kipo and his friends made their way back to the club.

"Did you miss us?" Kipo yelled as he came closer.

Kepler turned and looked up at Kipo. "Very funny, big guy," Kepler said. "Did you get the work done?"

"Blood is cleaned up," Kipo said landing, "and the bodies are up at Christo. Sanchez is lookin' after 'em. Anything else you need? 'Cuz we gotta head home. We bump into a lot of things when it's not too bright at night, and it ain't so bright tonight. Plus, we gotta be up bright and early for the ceremony up at Christo tomorrow."

"Guys," Kepler said, "you've done a great job and you deserve a break. As much as we need you for cleaning the rest up, if you feel that you need some rest, then you can rest."

Kipo sighed and looked at his friends. "Guys," Kipo said, "we need to help them out. It's not like they have a million other guys to work on this."

"Right," one of Kipo's friends said. "I'll go tell Kipo to stay up there. We've probably got plenty more bodies to clean up. Sleep can wait. We gotta show our respect for the victims here."

The bird flew back up to Christo to tell Sanchez.

"Luiz," Kepler said. "If you're not doing anything, can you watch the club for us?"

"Yeah," Luiz said with a sigh, sitting down. "It's not like I have anything better to do tonight."

"Salute to you, kid," Kepler said, taking off with Kipo and the rest of Kipo's friends back up to the sanctuary.

* * *

In Blu's tree, all was quiet, as well as in the forest, except for Ivan flying around to try and help or save whoever he could. There Blu sat, with his kids sound asleep from being up so late, up against the wall of his tree with his babe Jewel in his arms, realizing the mistakes he made. He let Jewel down, he let his kids down, and in his mind, he knew that he had let Rafael down. If it weren't for Rafael, Jewel, and Blu's kids, might very well be dead. For that matter, in Blu's mind, he let the entire forest down. Memories of a time during his first days in Rio popped into Blu's mind.

"But I thought you loved Carnival," Blu said to Rafael.

"I do," Rafael replied, "but I love my family much more. And that is a choice I made with this," he pointed to Blu's heart, "not this." He pointed to Blu's head.

It was enough for Blu to cry and for him to speak out loud.

"Please," Blu said through his sobs. "I'll do anything. Anything to have my baby awake in my arms again."

Out of pure guilt, he kissed Jewel and tried to make it last while holding back the tears. After about 20 seconds, he broke the kiss, raised his head up, and sighed.

Suddenly, Jewel moved a little, and her eyes twitched. Blu looked down and became excited to see her moving.

"Oh papa," Jewel said, snuggling in Blu's wings.

"You're safe," Blu said to her, "safe in the wings of your one and only love hawk."

"What?" Jewel yelled, jumping up out of Blu's arms and standing in front of him. Her eyes were wide as she stared at Blu, looking freaked out, scared, and surprised all at the same time. "Um, who are you?" she asked. "You are sooo not my father."

"You know who I am!" Blu jumped up onto his feet in protest. "I'm Blu! I'm your life companion! I'm your mate! I'm your other half! You're my wife! Your temporal lobe's been hit!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Jewel said stopping his protest. "I don't have a husband! I don't even know you! Who do you think you are?"

Blu couldn't believe it. His suspicions were dead on. She didn't remember him. She was hit so hard in just the right place on her head that her brain didn't remember him or her family. This just went from bad to worse. Blu couldn't even find the words to respond. His jaw just hung open looking at her, while he hopelessly thought of something to say.

"Just leave me alone, weirdo!" Jewel yelled. She turned and ran to the hole that led out of the tree. Blu couldn't let her. Before she was about to leave Blu grabbed her by the leg. She turned around and looked down at him, kicked him in the face, and flew out of the tree. Blu got up immediately and flew after her.

"Get away from me, you freak!" Jewel yelled.

"Jewel!" Blu pleaded as he flew after her. "Just wait up and listen to me!"

"Oh yeah, sure!" Jewel yelled as she kept getting faster. "Let's stop and listen to the freaky blue bird with the awkward nerdy voice!"

"Come on!" Blu continued to plead. "But you love that about me!"

"Go find your place somewhere else, nerd bird!" Jewel continued. She was now flying at rather dangerous speeds for this time at night. "Just go home and—

Jewel's rant was cut short when someone else flying towards her struck her nearly head on. She twisted sideways and backwards and began freefalling to the ground. The other bird, a large bird, was shaken up, but not seriously hurt. Blu had no time to say anything to the bird. He had to save Jewel. He dove downwards quickly to save Jewel from a certain death.

* * *

**Despite Jewel not remembering him, Blu knows that he still has to save her, because he loves her and cares for her, because that's what the wedding vows are, aren't they? Sickness and health? Better or worse? A love hawk's gotta care for the angel of his dreams. Keep it locked in here people! Chapter 9 will be out soon!**


	9. Chapter 9: I Don't Even Know You Part II

Chapter 9

Blu felt like his first days in Rio kept coming back to him. Flashbacks of things people said and events that occurred kept coming back into Blu's mind. Now, it was like he was jumping out of the airplane once again to save Jewel's life. This time, he could fly, but Jewel's life was still in danger.

As she plummeted to the ground like a rock, Blu hit what felt like his top speed catching up to her and passing her in an effort to get under and catch her before she hit the ground and faced certain death. Just moments before the ground became Jewel's resting place, Blu was able to get under her and grab her in his talons before she hit anything. He pulled up before hitting the ground and ascended back into the upper level of forest foliage.

Nico had finally caught up to him and came up to Blu in the air.

"What was that all about?" Nico said out of breath.

"My suspicions were proved correct," Blu replied. "Jewel does not remember me at all. Not only that, but she seems to not remember much at all. Whoever she hit, she hit hard enough to knock her out again. Maybe this time, she'll get everything back. At least, that's what I'm inferring."

"Yeah I'm okay if you're wondering!" a voice yelled. The voice was a thick New York style accent, with an older raspy background. He was definitely not young.

"I am so sorry," Blu said flying up to the bird in the low light. The bird was much bigger than he was. "She's not having the best of days."

"It doesn't seem like anyone is having a good day," the bird replied. "Have you seen my friend around here? My friends were getting worried that something might've happened to him, so they sent me to check it out."

"If I knew who your friend is," Blu said, "maybe I could help you."

"He looks like me," the bird explained. "Well, he's basically the same exact thing as me."

"I can't really see you," Blu said squinting.

"Wait a second," Nico said. "Are you talking about Kepler?"

"Yes!" the bird replied with an excited tone. "Where is he at?"

"He went back down to Ipanema to check on someone," Nico replied. "He'll be back, though."

"Guys," Blu butted back in. "I need to take Jewel and set her down back in the tree. Go find your friend. I'll take care of this."

Blu flew away with Jewel in his talons, and Nico and the bird followed behind.

"Poor guy," the bird said following behind Blu with Nico. "Does he have marriage problems?"

"She's a victim," Nico replied. "A group of birds just attacked the sanctuary less than an hour ago. She doesn't seem to remember any of us."

"Yeah," the bird said. "A good knock on the side of the noggin will do that to ya. Only way to get it back is to present her with something only she or her mate would know. Maybe a little secret? Could be anything, really. Then again, I've only seen it in male subjects." He laughed.

Nico caught on quickly and laughed as well. He and the other bird stopped and joined Pedro, while Blu flew into his nest with Jewel. Through the trees and into the forest came Kepler, Kipo, and some of his friends. Kepler saw the bird immediately and became surprised.

"Newton?" Kepler said in surprise. "The guys wanted a checkup, didn't they?

"You know how they are, Kep," the bird said. "When you get old, you start to care about your friends a little more." It was indeed Newton, another Hyacinth Macaw that looked exactly like Kepler. The only major difference between the two was that his accent was much different from Kepler's. Kepler's voice was very clear, lacking major noticeable accents. Newton's voice was a pure New York/Brooklyn accent.

"I don't blame 'em a bit," Kepler said. "I see you've met my friends. You know Nico. Well, at least you should know him. Who does he remind you of?"

Newton looked at Nico for a few seconds and thought. "Mariano!" he finally said. "He's related to Mariano?"

"Right on the money," Kepler said, not surprised at all. "Can't quite say that he shares his taste in music, though."

"We'll get him to listen to it one of these days," Newton joked. "Maybe then he'll realize what he's been missing."

"You know I'm glad you showed up," Kepler continued. "After 35 years of retirement I think we finally have a new set of objectives to take care of."

"Really?" Newton sounded excited. "Should I get the guys?"

"They can wait 'till tomorrow," Kepler continued. "I'm still pulling intel together on the situation." He turned to Nico, Pedro, Kipo, and Kipo's friends. "We'll have a meeting tonight at the club once we sort things out here and get things ready for the ceremony tomorrow. We've got so many things to do, and so little time to do them."

Kipo's friend returned from Christo as they were speaking.

"What do we got?" Kepler said as the bird came back to the forest.

"Sanchez is keeping an eye on them," the bird replied. "He said that the last thing that we would want is someone sabotaging the bodies on us when we're not looking. I trust him. His family has experience in the field of security."

"I never dealt directly with any spoonbills," Kepler said, "but I'll take your word for it. Now, I think it's time to help Ivan out. He probably needs us." He turned to the open forest. "Ivan!"

His voice echoed through the forest and he waited for a reply.

"Help me out over here!" Ivan's voice echoed through the forest.

"We don't know where you are!" Kepler yelled back into the forest. Flapping wings were heard in the distance, and soon enough, Ivan had rejoined them.

"Never mind that," Ivan said. "Every person I've found was either already dead or on the verge of dying. Except for a couple, of course. They got away with a few scratches. One had an infected wing, so I had to cut it off. Still couldn't stop the bleeding. Man I'll tell you. This is really bad."

"Let's get this done," Kepler said. "All of you, check everywhere for anyone's body. We need everyone accounted for and placed up at Christo. Let the families know as you pass by that they should be there tomorrow morning at 7. The sun should provide a perfect backdrop to let them go off into the afterlife. Don't just stand there and look at me! Get to work, boys!"

Everyone dispersed from the group, going in all different directions to look for bodies and tell residents of the forest about the ceremony. All of them except for Nico and Pedro, of course. They stayed there awkwardly and looked at each other.

"Shouldn't we be helping out?" Pedro asked.

"We can't," Nico replied. "Unless you suddenly had the ability to carry someone else's body, what would you be able to help with?"

Pedro was silent for a few seconds. "I guess you're right," he finally managed to say. "Let's just go back down to the club and relax for a little. My mind's in a giant jumble!"

"Right with you," Nico said, flying out of the forest. Pedro tried to catch up to him.

Blu landed in his tree and sighed as he put Jewel down sat next to her. He simply wanted this endeavor to be over with. He wanted his wife back, he wanted his life back, and he wanted his peace of mind back.

Bruno, Ramon, and Gabriela woke up after hearing Blu return.

"Daddy?" Gabriela said stretching and standing up.

"Go back to sleep, angel," Blu said looking away from her. "Mom and I are just dealing with some things, that's all."

"Is mommy okay?" Bruno asked, joining his sister.

"Mommy just had a little bump on the head," Blu tried to coax them away. "She just needs some rest. Okay? Go back to sleep now."

Unimportant activity was going on outside of the nest involving the rest of the birds engaging in conversation. Ramon, Bruno, and Gabriela surrounded Jewel and started pleading.

"Wake up, mommy!" Bruno yelled.

"Tuck us in!" Gabriela yelled.

"I want my mommy to kiss me goodnight!" Ramon yelled.

"Guys!" Blu yelled. "Stop! Let mommy rest, okay?"

They stopped and sighed. "Sorry, daddy," they all said together. They bowed their heads and sat back down in the corner of the tree, pretending to sleep. Blu lay down by Jewel and wrapped his wings around her, trying to get comfortable. To pass the time, he tried to think of a song that reminded him of his love for Jewel. But what was that perfect song? There were so many possibilities, but he knew that he wanted to use it for some kind of outing in the future, possibly a party. For now though, he waited until Jewel woke up again.

It was quite some time before Blu woke up from movement from Jewel. By now, the woods were quiet, and not much could be heard outside the tree. Blu kept his wings around Jewel. After a few seconds, her whole body twitched and Blu pulled his wings off of her. She stood up and looked at him.

"What happened?" Jewel asked, her big blue eyes staring at Blu, then looking left and right, then back at him again.

"You ran into someone," Blu said, getting up off of the ground. "They're okay, though. Maybe it's time that you tuck your kids in." He moved and pointed his wing towards the three kids. Jewel looked at them and became surprised, her eyes still wide open.

"They were waiting for you to wake up again," Blu said softly. "I guess they've already fallen asleep."

"I don't understand," Jewel said nervously. "I don't remember you, like at all. I don't remember them, either. But they look just like you and me."

"That's because they were made by us!" Blu got excited that she might have remembered a little. "I can still feel it."

"Feel what?" Jewel asked.

"Our first time," Blu said as he sank deep into thought of when he and Jewel first made love. (Please note that I probably won't make a lemon. Refer to the end of this chapter for that.)

In the middle of his rather erotic and pleasurable thoughts, the thought quickly went away after getting a smack in the face from Jewel. Blu put his wing on his beak, feeling the pain.

"Nice sweet talking, nerd," Jewel said with an irritated voice, "but let's be honest here. How could I forget something like that? Don't you think that if it was that important to me, I would have remembered it?"

Blu didn't know what to say. He just looked at Jewel and wondered how she couldn't remember, and why he couldn't seem to find the key to bringing her memory back.

"Look," Jewel said, trying to calm down, "thanks for everything. Thanks for giving me a place to stay when I needed it, and thanks for showing me everything, but I really think I should go. So, sorry if things didn't work out the way you planned. Maybe we'll see each other sometime in the future?"

Blu still couldn't find the words to say. His mouth opened, but nothing came out.

"I understand if you have nothing to say," Jewel said, "but just remember. Thanks." She took off from the tree. Blu sat there, with a few tears in his eyes. His love just walked out on him, and he couldn't find the words to say to keep her there. He knew that he shouldn't give up. He quickly got up and took flight after Jewel.

While he flew, he thought hard.

Come on, Blu said to himself. What is something that only she would know?

He thought back to his erotic memories of their first time. Things flashed everywhere: noises, voices, sights, feelings. Something hit him like a train.

Of course! Blu said to himself. He flew faster to catch up with Jewel, who was flying peacefully up to Christo. By the time he caught up with her, they were at the top of Christo overlooking the city. Below them, Sanchez was watching the bodies and heard them above. He looked up, surprised to see other birds.

"Jewel!" Blu said grabbing her and turning her around and looking straight into her eyes with sincerity. Her eyes widened and had an awkward look to them. "You have a birthmark on the inside of your cloacal wall!"

In what seemed like an eternity, Jewel's mouth dropped open and she stared at him with surprise, as if she was unconscious or in such disbelief that she had gone into shock. Finally, after a few seconds, her eyes blinked again.

"But," Jewel stammered, "that only is exposed—

"—during mating season," Blu finished her sentence. "I was with you. I remember. You remember. Come back to me, babe."

Jewel's surprised face went away, followed by calm, attractive eyes and a warm smile. "I've been back ever since you mentioned the birthmark."

"Please tell me this wasn't an act this whole time!" Blu yelled.

"To be honest," Jewel said, "I don't even know how I got up here. But I do know one thing."

"What's that, babe?" Blu wondered.

"I don't want to come back down," Jewel said. With that, Blu moved in for a romantic kiss, and Jewel had already known what he was going to do, and their beaks connected in what was their most romantic kiss since falling out of the plane. The kiss was long and passionate, both of them caught up in the moment of finding each other's love again. Sanchez looked up at them while it was going on.

"How cute," Sanchez said out loud but to himself. "It's like they just fell in love."

* * *

**Love always finds its way! Blu was able to find something, finally! Sanchez got to see his daily dose of romance I guess! So, I'm not sure if I want to write a lemon or not. When you leave your review, let me know what you think! Should I write one or not? Chapter 10 should find its way onto the site sometime soon!**


	10. Chapter 10: Kids at Heart

Chapter 10

Nico and Pedro arrived back to the samba club in a hurry, surprised to see Luiz standing guard in front of the club.

"What up, homie?" Pedro yelled to Luiz as he saw him and began to land in front of the club.

"Hey! Pedro! Nico!" Luiz walked up to them as they landed, equally as surprised. "Where you been, brothers?"

"We've had some freaky stuff goin' down tonight," Nico replied. "We got a million stories for you!"

"As do I!" Luiz replied. "But I have all night. You guys seem in a hurry, so I'll let you go first."

"Alright," Nico started. "Remember when we were riding off into the sunset? Well you headed off but poor Pedro over here wasn't feeling too well. You good, Pedro?"

"Yeah I'm good," Pedro gave assurance.

"Okay," Nico continued. "We settled that and we headed down to the club for opening night, but not before Blu got there and was having a jolly old time with his own tunes. Apparently he couldn't sleep or something. But anyways. He freaked out and flew up to the sanctuary for something. Turns out, some group of birds attacked everyone up there, lotta' damage and a lotta' friends that lost their lives. The rest of the guys are up there now trying to clean everything up for the funeral tomorrow morning. Meanwhile, back down here, some birds were talking about the attack. We subdued 'em and took 'em out back. The guys squawked about everything. We know the guy's name is Peter, and we know he used the birds for his dirty work. He's got some kind of surrogate though."

"You gotta speak English around me," Pedro butted in. "I don't have that kind of vocabulary. And be lucky I can even say vocabulary!"

Nico and Luiz laughed. "Funny, Pedro," Nico said. "It means Peter's got someone between him and the birds." He turned to Luiz. "So as I was saying. Jewel got hit over the head by one of the birds, ane she was knocked out for a while. When she finally came to, she didn't know anyone anymore! She ran off and Blu followed her. She hit someone else and almost died, but Blu saved her life. So now they're back at their tree doing heaven knows what."

"Who was that huge blue guy I saw earlier?" Luiz inquired.

"Well there're actually many of them!" Nico replied. "You probably saw Kepler, though. He was good friends with my grandfather."

"Very touching," Luiz said. "I, on the other hand, have had an equally odd night."

"Do tell, my friend!" Pedro yelled.

"Alright," Luiz started. "So as I was in the air I headed back home on the hang glider. I landed back at the garage, thinking I was just gonna go to sleep, but then I realized. I could meet up with you guys! So this truck comes driving down the street and I hopped into the back. The view was spectacular and I feel asleep by accident. When I woke up, I was up by the docks on the north side of town! These two guys were talking. They were kinda creepy and were talking about some evil plot. So I hung tight and waited for their next move. They drove to a prison or something, and they released all of the prisoners! They went to the airport and some guys got out. They had some kind of animal with them, but I couldn't see who it was."

"What did the people look like?" Nico asked, curious.

"One was fat," Luiz continued. "The other was thin. Both were Brazilian. The third guy had a beard and glasses. His voice was, well, kinda French. I think it was French. I'm not so good with the accent stuff."

"Pedro!" Nico looked at Pedro. "We know those guys! Remember them? They're the guys that captured us! And Blu! And Jewel! And Rafael!"

"I remember them!" Pedro said. "They're smugglers! They might've had that evil white bird with them. What's his name?"

"I can't remember," Nico replied. "It doesn't sound like they're up to much good, though."

"After they left the airport," Luiz continued, "the last guy drove into town and stopped the truck on a little street. He got out and walked down the street. Next thing you know, I hear gunshots! Then that lady that knows Blu rounded the corner and saw me. She was kinda surprised."

"She barely even knows who you are!" Nico said.

"Still!" Luiz replied. "So she left and I walked away because I just wanted to go home. I went to the beach and relaxed for a few minutes, but I fell asleep again! I woke up a little while later and decided I'd go to the club and find you guys! So I came here and ran into your big blue friend. He told me to wait here. I've been waiting here ever since!"

"Alright," Nico acknowledged. "So we're all caught up now. I don't know what you should do, honestly. You're on the opposite side of the city from home, so I don't know how you'll get back in time to get any sleep for tomorrow."

"I don't have to go back," Luiz said. "I'll just chill with you guys. I mean, I know I can't fly, but I'll just stay here and help out, you know?"

"I feel ya," Nico replied. "But the thing is, I think we should pay our respects to the victims of the tragedy tonight by not having the samba club open for the rest of the night. If you wanna stay here for the night, you're more than welcome. There's plenty of room in the club for you to hit the hay. Gotta promise that you won't snore though."

Luiz and Pedro laughed. "I don't snore, bro!" he replied through his chuckles. "I promise! I agree with you, we gotta pay respects. It's what's right."

"I hate to leave you like this," Nico said to Luiz, "but we gotta go back up and check on the guys' progress. We'll pay you back for all of this, I promise. Would Nico lie to a brother?"

"Probably not," Luiz replied, acknowledging the situation. "I have nothing better to do. I'm always willing to do a good deed for a brother! Ain't nothin' happening to this place as long as I'm here!"

"You sir," Nico said, "are a boss! We'll be back soon, bro! Stay classy!"

"Peace," Luiz said to them as Nico and Pedro took off. He sat down and enjoyed the quiet for a little while.

Nico and Pedro made their way back to the forest. They arrived back at the center of the sanctuary to see a flurry of activity.

"Jobs don't get done by themselves!" Kepler yelled to everyone as he flew around the forest looking for the bodies of those who lost their lives in the attack. As soon as he found one on the floor of the forest, he carefully picked the lifeless bird up in his talons and barely closed them to avoid causing damage. "These birds must be treated with respect! They were your friends! Your brothers! Show them that you care enough to provide what's left of them with decency!" He took off with the lifeless bird, heading out of the forest towards Christo.

As he arrived, Sanchez greeted him.

"We're putting them here for now," Sanchez said, pointing to a growing pile of birds. "This place is closed to humans until 9 o'clock tomorrow morning! That means we got two hours to do something with all of them! But I'd hate to disrespect their corpses like that."

"Their families can't even believe that we're doing this," Kepler said, landing and dropping off the body. "They know that we're on a strict timetable here. The humans though," he snorted in disgust, "Everything needs to be perfect. They don't get that life isn't that pretty, and they need to accept that. Until then, they'll bury their dead 'till they run out of room."

"What's with you and philosophy?" Sanchez wondered.

"My owner loved philosophy," Kepler replied. "I got to enjoy a lot of things that he liked. They're just the perks of having a human take care of ya."

Just then, Newton brought a body to Christo as well.

"Look who I find chatting it up," Newton said in an instigating manner. "What a hypocrite. The boss'd be pretty disappointed."

"Save it," Kepler replied back. "You know that I could care less about what Leo thinks! Besides, he's six thousand miles away! The only way he's getting back here is if there's an army reunion between the guys!"

"We can only hope," Newton said. "Now, do you want to get this done or not?"

"Right behind you, you old blue coot!" Kepler lept from the banister and showed off in the skies with his flying moves.

"Look at this guy!" Newton yelled out loud to no one directly. "Hey, Kep!" he yelled to Kepler. "Look who's talkin'! You're an old blue coot, too!"

"Ah tell it to someone who cares!" Kepler yelled back playfully. Newton jumped off of the banister and followed Kepler back into the woods.

"Man I'll tell ya," Sanchez said to himself out loud while looking at the two Hyacinths. "They may be old, but they're still kids at heart."

**Even the old can have plenty of fun! Magic can happen in Rio, people! I'm sorry I can't get as much out as I used to, the work is piling up and I'm finding little time to write anymore. I promise you all, I'm working as fast as I can. For those of you that wanted me to do the lemon, you've convinced me. But you're gonna have to wait a while! At the conclusion of the story (which is very far away from now), I will include it along with another special surprise at the end! Thanks guys! Chapter 11 will be out soon!**


	11. Chapter 11: The Whole Story Part I

Chapter 11

When discussing tedious activities, one usually skips repetitive language and provides a brief overview of the situation. This is to provide the reader with a simplified version of live events to create an easier reading experience. One might find it odd if an author kept repeating the same story of Kepler grabbing a lifeless bird and bringing him up to Christo, then proceeding to go back and do the same thing, explaining it fully once more. For this, a simple explanation is all that is needed.

For quite some time, the group of birds, consisting of Kepler, Newton, Kipo, Kipo's friends, Ivan, and a few friendly birds that decided to help out, continued to bring bodies up to Christo to prepare for the next morning. They worked quickly, tirelessly, and swiftly. Kepler brought the last body up to Christo while everyone else waited from him up at the statue. Nico and Pedro had noticed that they were no longer in the sanctuary, and made their way up to Christo and waited.

The crowd of birds was silent as Kepler emerged from the forest with the last bird in his talons. He placed the body on the pile with the rest and began.

"My friends," Kepler's voice boomed to the crowd of birds. "It's usually not my place to speak on behalf of someone else. But, when those we know cannot speak for themselves, I believe that someone has to do it for them. These poor, innocent souls are the victims of a crime against the avian community of Rio de Janeiro. Their cards have been placed on the table in front of you." He directed his attention by pointing to the pile of bodies. "That is their hand. Their hand is the unjustified slaughtering of your friends. There are too many to count here. If the number were a hundred, it would be a hundred too many. If it were ten, it would still be ten too many. Even if it were just a single life lost, even then it would still be one too many. There is no price on life.

"All in this forest, and all in every other forest, are created equal among each other. Each one of them deserves the same thing: to live, to pursue dreams, and to be free. Their hand contains a violation of these three things. No one on this Earth should have to live in fear of someone else. By living in fear, you give the oppressors the satisfaction that they need to continue doing what they do. If someone is good at something, they are going to keep doing it, even if they hate it. If you show resistance, they do not succeed. If someone isn't good at something, they will eventually stop, even if they love it.

"So here you sit, at the poker table. Your opponent has placed their cards down in front of you. You now must look at your hand and see what you have. You must choose what your response will be to this act of war. You can go home, and live in fear of these acts. You've placed your losing cards down onto the table, and your opponent collects his chips. There is an alternative to this, however. You can choose to resist the oppressors and fight back. You place your winning hand onto the table, and your opponent accepts defeat as you collect the chips.

"I am not here to coach you. I have been on this Earth long enough to know why things happen the way they do. You don't have to listen to me. That's your choice. But I will warn you. I am just one bird among a city of millions. I can help you fight a war, but I can't fight a war for you. Tomorrow morning, we will show our respect to our fallen brothers and sisters. At that time, you must choose your hand. My hand has been chosen since I heard about the incident, and I hope yours has, too. Those people down there are looking up to you. You are their saviors and their leaders. It's time you all started acting like leaders."

Nico and Pedro started slowly clapping, and the rest of the group followed suit, applauding the great speaker in front of them.

"You're all too kind," Kepler said. "All of you, please feel free to join us tonight for music and a drink at the club with Nico and Pedro! A toast to our brothers. Hooah!"

"Hooah!" the crowd replied.

"I don't remember organizing a party," Pedro said to Nico.

"We didn't," Nico replied. "This one's unplanned!"

Kepler took off towards the samba club, and everyone else followed suit, except for Sanchez, who stayed to watch the bodies.

Minutes after the group left, Blu and Jewel emerged from the sanctuary, and their small scene of finding each other again played out. Sanchez had heard them and looked up at them kissing.

"How cute. It's like they just fell in love." Sanchez said.

A few seconds later, the romantic kiss ended, and Blu and Jewel looked into each other's eyes.

"I hope that whatever I said didn't offend you," Jewel looked with guilt into Blu's eyes. "I hope you forgive me."

"Well," Blu replied, "It's not a polite practice to hold grudges, so I won't hold one against you." He smirked at her.

"English please," Jewel smirked back.

"I forgive you," Blu replied. They kissed again, much to Sanchez's surprise.

"HEY LOVE BIRDS!" Sanchez screamed jokingly up to them. Their kiss was awkwardly interrupted, and they looked down in embarrassment to see where the voice had come from. "Try to keep the hormones under control, okay?" He laughed.

"We'll finish this later," Jewel said to Blu. They both flew down from the top of Christo and stood in front of Sanchez, but not before they caught a sight and a whiff of deceased birds.

"Whoa!" Blu thrust back away from the smell. "Ugh! The post-life breakdown of carbon-based structures!"

"Hey!" Sanchez sounded offended. "Respect for the dead, please!"

"What do you think you're doing?" Blu yelled at Sanchez as he landed, trying to ignore the smell. "Why is there a pile of bodies sitting here?"

"I guess you didn't get the memo," Sanchez replied. "Tomorrow morning, we're giving these birds a ceremony, and then we're taking it right to the enemy!"

"What are you talking about?" Blu had no idea what was going on. Jewel looked on, a bystander to the conversation.

"We know who did it!" Sanchez exclaimed. "I'm told it's some guy named Peter. He lives under the big bridge that crosses the bay! He's got his own private security force that does his dealing with other groups, and they got a bunch of birds to attack us tonight! They're all going down to the club right now for a little night of socializing and planning. Just head down there now!"

"But what about you?" Blu asked.

"This is my job," Sanchez replied. "They want me to watch over these bodies, and I'm going to do that, whether I like it or not."

"Alright," Blu said. "Thanks." He took off and Jewel followed.

"If we want to join them," Blu said to Jewel, "then we need to drop the kids off somewhere. I don't trust leaving them alone."

"That reminds me," Jewel said in a slightly agitated tone. "Where were you?"

"What do you mean 'where was I'?" Blu didn't understand.

"When we needed you!" Jewel was not very happy now. "I wake up and I hear things outside, and I look over, and you're not there!"

"I couldn't sleep," Blu said, sighing. "I went down to the samba club to try and burn off some energy, but it didn't work. Then I got this feeling that something was wrong at home, and I got back as soon as I could. By the time I got there, you were already out cold! I had to take a guy out before he hurt the kids!"

"One month into our marriage," Jewel said, "and you're already showing me how irresponsible you are! You're lucky you're the only guy left, because I would leave you in a second if another came trotting along!" She flew away from him towards the nest.

"Wait!" Blu shouted, trying to catch up.

"Go with your friends!" Jewel shouted back, agitated. "They're more important to you than me! I'll find someplace else to stay!"

Blu stopped. What was her problem? Was she tired? Was her brain still shaken up? Tonight was just way too much for Blu. From having to take the life of another, to getting his wife to remember him again, nothing was going right. He decided that it might have been best to leave Jewel alone for a while, so that she could calm down. He left the forest and headed for the club.

Jewel flew back to the tree. She landed inside and walked over to her kids. She brushed the backs of their heads with her wing, and Bruno woke up.

"Mommy?" Bruno said groggy.

"Yes, honey," Jewel said to him. "It's mommy. We're going to spend some time with Uncle Ralphie. Would you like that?"

"Yes, mommy," Bruno replied. He stood up, shook his wings, and stretched. He bumped his brother and sister on the heads.

"Get up!" he yelled. They woke up and looked around.

"What is it?" Gabriela asked.

"What's wrong?" Ramon asked, getting up.

"We're going to Uncle Raphie's!" Bruno exclaimed. "Let's go!"

"Is it true, mommy?" Ramon asked.

"Yes it is," Jewel sweet talked her child. "Follow close to mommy! It's very dark outside!"

"We will, mommy," the three kids said in unison. Jewel left the tree with the kids behind her. She flew just a short distance before she reached Rafael's tree. She landed inside to find Rafael and Eva sitting together while their kids slept.

"Jewel?" Rafael said as he looked over to the tree opening. "Do you need something?"

"We just need a place to stay for tonight," Jewel replied as the kids scrunched up behind her. "Blu has some things to do tonight, and I don't feel comfortable sleeping alone."

"And I thought I was the paranoid one!" Rafael joked. "You're always welcome in _minha casa_. Please, have a seat. Relax. You look tense! Calm yourself. You've had a very rough day. You had all of us worried."

Jewel tucked her children in next to Rafael's children while he talked. "Goodnight, my angels," she said to them. She kissed their heads and they went to sleep. "I don't even remember what I said," Jewel replied to Rafael, sitting down next to them. "I just wish— she sighed "—that he would take hold of the reigns a little harder. I mean, he is the male of the relationship. Aren't you males supposed to do that?"

Rafael and Eva laughed. "Jewel," Rafael explained, "sometimes love isn't perfect. It's a giant puzzle. If all of the pieces fit together the same way, the puzzle could be solved by anyone, and love would be, well, too easy. In a way, it's like a game, but not a game to fool around with! It's about finding yourself, and making room for that other bird in your heart. It has only been a month! You are going to find issues once in a while between the two of you! I know you may feel like he's not for you in some ways, but trust me. The moment I saw you two together, you two were the two correct puzzle pieces!

"You may be unsure of him sometimes, but you have to understand. He grew up a different way from you! You spent your life free and happy. He spent his life living with a human, and in a cage! He loves you for who you are. You complete him! And he completes you! The puzzle pieces don't just fit. You have to make them fit if you want happiness! You have to move them around and find the right place to put them together. If you decided to have his kids, then there is no doubt in my mind that you two were meant to be!"

"Okay," Jewel tried to relax. "I don't know what a puzzle is, but they sound like a lot of fun! But yes, I understand. I think I was a little too hard on him tonight. I hope he'll forgive me." She looked down in self-disappointment.

"Like I said," Rafael said. "He forgave you before the words even came out of your mouth. He doesn't care what happens. He wants to make this work. And for the sake of your species, well, he has to make this work! There's no one else on this earth that he would want more than you!"

"We'll sort things out," Jewel said. "I'm sure. By the way, thanks for looking after the kids."

"This whole place is one family," Rafael said. "If you don't have your friends and family, then you really don't have anything at all."

Blu reached the samba club just a few minutes after he left the sanctuary. He touched down and saw Luiz standing outside of the club.

"Luiz?" Blu said, surprised to see him.

"Hey Blu!" Luiz was surprised to see him as well, and he ran and gave Blu a hug. "You look good, buddy! Where you been?"

"I've been around," Blu said awkwardly from the hug. Luiz let go.

"You here to join the guys?" Luiz asked.

"I just heard that everyone was down here," Blu replied, "and I decided to come down and see what was happening."

"Well head on in!" Luiz moved out of the way. "They're starting a little party in there! I'll see you later, bud!"

"Have a good one, Luiz," Blu said as he walked into the club. Inside, more classic music was playing over the speakers in a quieter volume, and a bunch of birds were sitting at the bar being served drinks by Ivan. Others were on the dance floor talking.

"_Cuz I can't stop loving you. No I can't stop loving you. No I won't stop loving. Why should I?"_

Nico noticed Blu and went over to him.

"There's my main man!" Nico said in front of Blu. "How'd everything work out with you and the lady?"

"After a lot of work," Blu replied, "she finally remembered me. I told her something that only the two of us would know." He winked at Nico.

"Hold on there, man!" Nico laughed and felt awkward at the same time. "That's way too much more than I need to know. Come on! Have a seat! Ivan'll get you something! I also have a friend that would love to meet you!"

"I'll follow you, then!" Blu said. Nico led him to a seat at the bar next to Kepler.

"He's all yours, Kep!" Nico said, walking away. Blu looked to his right at the bar, and next to him towered Kepler. Blu's eyes widened and he couldn't believe how tall he was. Kepler turned in his seat and looked down at Blu.

"You must be the guy that Nico talks so highly of!" Kepler said to Blu. "You're probably not used to seeing anyone as big as I am!" He laughed. "Hope I'm not scaring you or anything! The name's Kepler! Right next to me here is one of my buddies, Newton." He turned to Newton. "Hey Newton! Give this guy a warm greeting, would you?"

"Howdy," Newton said, enjoying a drink. "The name's Newton." He went back to enjoying his drink.

"I've read about you," Blu said. "You're a Hyacinth Macaw. You're classified as endangered under IUCN protocols! There are only a few thousand of you left! It's quite the privilege to speak to you. How are you so fluent in English?"

"You know what, kid?" Kepler said. "Why don't I just give you the whole story?"

"I would be honored," Blu said.

**Kepler is ready to open his mouth again and portray an interesting tale! You're about to learn what has really happened since the very beginning, but you're going to have to be left hanging on the edge for this one! Chapter 12 will be out soon enough.**


	12. Chapter 12: The Whole Story Part II

Chapter 12

"So where do you want me to start?" Kepler asked Blu.

"Start from the very beginning," Blu replied. "I want to know everything."

"I hope you have a lot of time," Kepler warned, "because this isn't some cute little fairy tale that your grandma told you."

"Well," Blu said, "my wife is in a terrible mood, a bunch of people are dead, and you're running this show. I got all the time in the world! Just run through everything you know. I want the real story behind everything."

"Alright," Kepler started. "I'm old. You know that, right?"

"I don't know anything about you," Blu replied.

"Well," Kepler continued, "I'm old. 55 to be exact. In that kind of time, a bird sees a lot. I've been all over the place. I've known so many, and lost so many. When you get older, kid, you'll realize how rough life really is. Sometimes the undiscovered truth is best left undiscovered. Of course, no one achieves happiness in life without trying. It's a quid pro quo situation. You do good things in life, life rewards you. I'm sure you could think of an instance right now of you giving all for happiness."

"Yeah," Blu said, remembering past events. "I jumped out of a plane to save my wife."

"There has to be more than that to it," Kepler said.

"I didn't know how to fly," Blu said with a smile. "Being caged all your life, you don't really get a chance to learn how to fly."

"Most birds learn flying in infancy though," Kepler said. In Blu's mind flashed small snippets of his early life, but he couldn't put them together.

"Maybe one day," Blu sighed, "more of my memory will come back to me."

"Your mind has erased things for a reason," Kepler explained once more. "Our minds have photographic memory. If you've forgotten something from you past, then that's your brain's selectivity at work. It knows that sad or traumatic events do no good on your mind. They build up stress, distract you, and make you do things you wouldn't otherwise do. Don't even try looking back, because it will only hurt you. That's the way my life began. My species was once a thriving part of this ecosystem. As far as the eye could see, a massive area known as the Amazon Rainforest took up almost half of the South American continent. It was renowned for its breathtaking views, isolated human tribes, and millions of species, many of them undiscovered.

"It was the summer of 1956. That's when I took that first breath of life that every living being takes as it becomes self sufficient. I was the first of two children in my family. My birth name was Diego, and my brother's birth name was Robert. From what elders in my community told me, my father's name was Ruiz and my mother's name was Carmela. The Hyacinths are some of the largest birds in the Amazon, and my mother and father were the pride of our little community. We lived in an area of forest near where the city of Brasilia now stands. All you could see were the tops of trees sloping up and down with elevation. I'll never forget my first flight. If there is one thing that has stuck with me that long, it's my first flight.

"It was early one morning. I was sleeping in our tree high above the forest floor on a beautiful morning. The sun had begun to rise over the horizon, and the blue sky yielded no clouds as far as the eye could see. I awoke to the swoop of someone returning to our nest, and it made me curious. I opened my eyes and saw my father with breakfast. It's a good thing he brought breakfast. I was rather hungry. I was still a little wobbly, but I managed to stand up on my little feet and walked over to my father. I yelled, 'Daddy! I'm hungry!' and my father replied, 'I knew you'd be!' as he wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tight.

"'Today's the big day, sport,' my father explained to me. 'It's time you learned to fly like your old man.' Of course, my younger brother couldn't fly yet, let alone even speak. He was just a week or so behind me, but I guess we progress really fast. My father handed me a nut that he had already cracked and I devoured it as fast as I could. 'You're getting older now,' my father explained to me. 'That means you have to begin learning more adult things, such as flying. I assure you, though, that flying is completely natural to birds like us.'

"'I can do it, daddy!' I yelled out loud standing on the edge of my nest. My father took off from the nest and flew around in all sorts of crazy fashions. 'Woohoo!' he yelled as he flew. 'You must make sure that you feel it in your heart! For if you do not, you cannot fly!' I wanted to be just like my father. My curiosity and yearn for adventure sent me plummeting out of my tree. My mind raced with thoughts of being free, and soon enough, my wings took hold of the air around me, and I ceased from falling. I was stationary in the air. I couldn't believe it. I was flying like my father, and I was so happy!

"I had fallen below the canopy and I had to ascend to make my way back up to the treetops. With all of the strength that I could find, I beat my wings and raised myself up from the forest, and before I knew it, I was once again level with my nest. 'I can fly, daddy!' I yelled out loud after turning to where my father was. There was a problem, however. My father was not there. I looked around the area yelling 'Daddy?' many times. From behind me, something blindsided me and placed me back in the nest. I looked up to see that it was my mother, tears pouring out of her eyes. 'They can't do it!' she screamed through her intense tears and sobs. 'They can't take him away from me!' My mother flew out of the nest and below the canopy. I sat there in complete silence next to my brother, who looked at me and smiled. He was unaware of what was happening. I was clueless, too.

"A minute later, my mother returned to the nest, still sniffling. A red substance covered my mother's feet and talons. 'What happened, mommy?' I asked her as she arrived back. 'Daddy's taking a trip,' my mother replied, looking away from me. 'He won't be back for a while.'"

"Your father died, didn't he?" Blu said glumly.

"My father was in the wrong place at the wrong time," Kepler said quietly, pointing his head down and fighting off tears. "Small human tribes lived everywhere, and there was one in particular that gave our community the most trouble. We called them '_os demônios_'."

"The demons," Blu said.

"Your Portuguese is very good," Kepler said nodding his head in approval. "We called them that because they were different from other tribes in the area. They were strange people. They dressed themselves in elegant headdresses of blue and red feathers. Many of those feathers came from members of our own community, victims of their relentless hunts for more feathers. During their ceremonies, they proceeded to run in circles around campfires and scream in a wild manor, similar to the way demons would. Older members of our community hated them, and occasionally vandalized things while they were away. My mother's feet were covered in blood when she returned because she had mutilated the face of one of The Demons before coming back to the nest. The worst part of the tragedy, though, was that my mother had to raise two children without a husband. You must be able to imagine how difficult it would have been."

"It would require constant devotion," Blu said, "and relentless perseverance."

"I couldn't say it better myself," Kepler continued. "My mother had her share of difficulties, but because she had the community, she had the support of so many friends. In my early years, Brasilia's construction began, and they encroached on our land more and more as time passed. The Demons did not like this. A few workers were injured by projectiles fired at them by native tribes, including The Demons. No one in our community dared to try and attack The Demons to stop their rampaging. They feared that they would hunt down the entire community in retaliation. Of course, this was before my friends and I had come of age.

"Currently, in the area, there are four of us that live in close proximity to one another. We reside on the other side of the mountains from you, closer to the city. All of us have been friends for longer than we can really remember. Our mothers introduced all of us when we were young, and we frequently flew around together. We began to get older, larger, and smarter. By the time we were five years old Brasilia was completed, and thousands of humans made their way into the city. The least of their concerns was the environment, and it would prove to be no good to any of us."

**I know how much you guys wanted to read Kepler's tale, so here's the very first part! He's got a lot more to say, so hang in there! The entire backdrop of the story will unfold before you! Chapter 13 will be out as soon as possible!**


	13. Chapter 13: Interrupted

Chapter 13

Kepler continued to speak. "There's no doubt in my mind that the city was magnificent. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before. The buildings, the roadways, and the art all seemed to be something that was never seen before. I'm sure you've read plenty on the city."

"I've read a book or two," Blu said.

"They had that part right," Kepler continued, "but that didn't mean they had everything right. You see, my friend, back then, compared to today, humans cared much less about anything that wasn't human. Adding to the problem, their technology was dinosaur-aged by modern standards. At the beginning of the construction, the cleared land was about a mile and a half from my community. By the time it was an adult, well, let's just say that we had to find someplace else to live. Our community could find a way to adapt. The Devils, however, were not happy with the changes. They continued to injure and kill construction workers that neared their sacred land. Over time, the government became fed up with these indigenous tribes, and they sent troops to deal with them. When they arrived, however, they found every member of The Devils dead."

"Who could have killed them?" Blu wondered.

"Their killers were not human," Kepler said, "and you don't have to look far to find them." He winked at Blu.

"You killed them?" Blu became surprised. "Alone? All of those monsters?"

Kepler laughed. "Silly," he replied. "Of course not! You can't take on a tribe of humans alone! The key is to overwhelm them with sheer numbers and agility. The elders knew this, and they insisted that there had to be another way to solve the problem. Those that opposed our idea included my mother. I looked her straight in the eyes and told her, 'This is for dad'. The rest of my friends believed that it was the right thing to do, and my mother sat back and realized that I was growing up. I had to learn how to make my own decisions. So early one morning, we decided that it was time to take action. If it weren't for something from the human world, I may have never been able to win that battle."

"What helped you?" Blu asked.

"There was an air force base in Brasília," Kepler replied. "All around the clock, planes took off and landed as they pleased. They flew so fast, that not even your voice could catch them. They performed exercises in the air, flying in all sorts of patterns. It wasn't until later in my life that I found information about what they were doing, but I'll get to that later. What's important, though, is how they were doing it. They would take off and get to a very high altitude. From there, they would go into a vertical dive, heading straight for the ground. Just when it seemed as if they would crash into the ground in a pile of flames, they would pull back and fly parallel with the ground in an attack formation. I knew then that I should do what the humans do.

"So, with that, it was time to defend our community and finish what my mother had started when I was just a fledgling. There were six of us: myself, my brother Robert, and my friends Lucas, Rodrigo, Raul, and Alexandre. Friends are invaluable assets to you, kid. Ugh, I'm getting tired of calling you kid. What's your real name?"

"The name's Blu," Blu replied smiling. "Well, my formal name is Tyler Blu Gunderson. That's what my owner named me."

"You had an owner?" Kepler was very surprised. "I wasn't told this."

Blu tried to think very hard. "I remember very little," Blu said, "like I said before. The earliest thing I remember was having a little girl as a companion in a house with a family. Her name was Linda. She gave me a cage and everything. For as long as I can remember, Linda and I did everything together. I did schoolwork with her, read books with her, and even walked in the park with her. I had a place to stay and a family to enjoy. I couldn't have asked for anything more."

"So tell me then," Kepler said, "how you ended up here."

"A guy named Tulio came to the bookstore one afternoon," Blu explained. "He came looking for me! He told Linda that I was the last male of my kind!"

"How many of you are there, exactly?" Kepler wondered.

"Including my kids," Blu said, "there are 5 of us now."

"And I thought I was rare," Kepler looked surprised at Blu. "We're both fortunate that we've had the opportunities to keep our species going. Some other birds have not been as lucky. I'll get back to this later.

"So, as I was saying. The sun slowly crept up on the horizon that morning. The air was crisp, and the bright blue sky began to make its presence known. My friends and I had a branch of a tree in the community that we frequented when we discussed things. We could not think of a better place to sit and overlook The Devils as they slept. When humans sleep, they are as weak and as vulnerable as anything else that moves in this world. Our species have not perfected this skill because we are not carnivores. However, you can teach yourself to do almost anything, and that is exactly what we did. You could almost feel what it was like sitting on that tree branch. Watching. Waiting. Thirsty for revenge."

"As we looked down upon that camp, my brother stood next to me. 'Remember what I taught you,' I told him. I looked down the tree branch at my other friends. 'That includes all you,' I said to all of them. My brother looked at me and said, 'I'm having last second thoughts about this.' I put my wing on his shoulder, looked at him, and said, 'Robert,_ Faça-o para o seu pai_.'"

"Do it for you father," Blu said, tearing up from the emotional tale. At the same time, Nico came up behind Kepler and tapped him on the back.

"Hey Kep!" Nico yelled over the music, which somehow managed to become drowned out during the entire conversation. Music was still playing. It was now a different song than before.

"_I would do anything for love. I'd run right into Hell and back…_"

"It's getting late and we all want to be hitting the sheets sometime soon," Nico continued. "So, can you lay out tomorrow's agenda so everyone can head on home?"

"We'll finish this later," Kepler said to Blu. "I have some business to tend to."

"Fine by me," Blu replied. He turned to Ivan at the bar as Kepler walked away. "Hey Ivan!" Blu called out. "Got any seltzer?"

"Seltzer?" Ivan laughed. "A couple hours ago, you wanted the nasty stuff, and now you want seltzer? Ha ha ha! You've got character, American! I'll give you that! Dedication too!"

"So what was he talking to you about? " Newton turned and asked Blu as Blu eagerly awaited his drink.

"He's telling me the whole story," Blu replied. "It seems like he's giving me his life in novel form." He laughed a little.

"Typical Kepler," Newton said with a little laugh, sipping his drink. "He'll take any chance he gets to give some enticing story to anyone who chooses to listen. But, that's why we love 'em."

"Is Pepsi alright?" Ivan asked from over at the drinks. "I don't have any seltzer."

"That'll work," Blu said as he Ivan quickly poured some into a small glass and walked over to the counter with it.

"Here," Ivan said, placing the drink down. "Enjoy this while you listen to your friend up there." He pointed to Kepler standing up on the stage. Blu turned, drink in wing, and watched Kepler. Everyone else in the room was doing the same.

Kepler stood on the stage behind the DJ turntables, with a microphone sitting on a stand in front of him. He began to speak to everyone at the club.

"I was put up here on short notice," Kepler said, laughing. A few birds in the club also laughed. "I'm told that you guys wanna go home."

"Poor Sanchez is still waiting up at Christo!" Kipo said out loud. "What are we gonna do about him?"

"Well," Kepler replied, "I'm gonna speed the process up a little bit for you folks, but as for Sanchez, he agreed to stay up there all night and watch the bodies. He's got all of tomorrow to rest if he wants! So, it's time to get back on topic now. I've been informed that I should lay out an agenda for tomorrow so that everything is coordinated and runs smoothly." A group of yes's could be heard from the crowd. "Alright, so here is the game plan. The funeral starts at seven A.M. sharp. The statue opens to the public at nine tomorrow, and we need to make sure that we are finished before any humans see us with a pile of bird corpses on top of a mountain." A few birds laughed again. "After we have finished the funeral, and the families have left, we should meet back here afterwards to eat something and prepare the strike team to check out the Costa e Silva Bridge for any signs of this mysterious character named Peter. If my intuition tells me right, then he will have a backup team guarding his location. We need to be ready for anything. My friend Newton and I will return to our nests tonight and summon the rest of our friends. We have experience in the area of combat and tactics, and the amount of knowledge that we have gained should take us to victory over this 'Peter'. He can hide behind any number of birds, humans, or objects. We will find him, and bring justice back to the sanctuary and to the rest of the avian community!"

Kepler stepped down from the podium as cheers came from the crowd. Blu found himself clapping, along with Newton and Ivan. As Kepler walked back over to the bar, and most of the birds there started to head for the exit, a loud crashing sound could be heard from above. Everyone inside looked up to the roof of the club to see a piece of remaining scaffolding come through the thick fabric roof and smash into the center of the dance floor, barely missing a few birds. Most were too stunned by the scare to move, but Blu didn't take any chances. Apparently, neither did Kepler, because they both ran outside of the club at the same time to check out what had happened.

**Kepler's story is going to have to wait until this little mystery is solved! Chapter 14 coming soon!**

**Another note: I am considering writing a crossover between Rio and another animated show or film. I need some good suggestions from all of the readers out there! Let me know in your review!**


	14. Chapter 14: Another Rat?

Chapter 14

Blu and Kepler rushed outside of the samba club to check out what had caused the scaffolding to fall the roof and down onto the dance floor.

"Did somebody set the scaffold up wrong?" Kepler said partially to himself, and partially to Blu.

"You'd have to ask Pedro or Kipo," Blu replied while they ran. "I wasn't involved in putting this place back up."

When the two macaws reached the market outside, they turned around to look up at where the scaffold once stood. As they looked up at the roof, they saw a dark figure sway just a bit on the roof of the club, as it appeared to be staring at them.

"Don't even think about it," Kepler warned the figure. "It would be flat out foolish to—

Kepler's warning was interrupted by the sudden whip of the figure's body, and subsequently, the figure taking off from the roof and flying away at very high speeds. Before Blu could even begin to think about a response, Kepler had already taken off faster than he ever could have imagined. Blu quickly took off and tried to catch Kepler.

Neither of them noticed Luiz sitting on the cold concrete, resting his eyes. He opened one eye and looked up at Kepler and Blu, let out a deep exhale, and closed his eyes once more.

Kepler was breathing very heavy and seemed to be exerting everything he had as he slowly crept up behind the dark flying figure. His middle-aged heart pumped uncontrollably in his chest, and his blood coursed through every vein, including the ones he had forgotten about. The stress level was the equivalent of running a full marathon, and Kepler's body didn't seem to like it.

The flying figure had taken him all the way across Ipanema to Copacabana. By then, Kepler was just two feet away from the flying figure. The clear night allowed moonlight to leave an intense glimmer on everything. When the angle was just right, some light bounced off of the flying figure, and Kepler saw that whoever was flying, they were blue, a similar blue to his own feathers. With everything that Kepler had left in him, he pushed as hard as he possibly could to gain the last two feet. At last, he was almost on top of the blue assailant when he used his talons to grasp the body of the runaway bird just enough to get him to stop trying to escape. Blu was not far behind Kepler, and he arrived at the scene in a matter of seconds.

"Well it's about time," Blu sighed with relief. "I thought I was going to pop a blood vessel from trying so hard."

"Please!" the bird screamed to Kepler with pure fear and guilt in his eyes. "Don't kill me! They'll kill my family!"

"Calm down," Kepler said, trying to stop him from freaking out. "Easy now. As long as you cooperate with us, we have no reason to hurt you in any way."

"I'll do whatever you say," the bird said, calming down, "but you have to make this quick! You have to let me go in a few minutes! They're expecting me back soon!"

"Who's expecting you?" Kepler pushed for answers.

"I…," the bird stuttered, "I…I never got to see their faces. It was too dark. It's a very long and complicated story. I'm supposed to meet them on Glória Beach! You can come with me and keep a safe distance, and then I can tell you everything after they leave. Alright?"

"Deal," Kepler said. He released his grip on the bird, and the bird flapped his wings again.

"Just follow behind me," the bird said. He quickly took off, and Kepler and Blu followed him.

It was a couple of miles to reach Glória Beach. By the time they arrived, the bird had descended into the lights lining the sidewalk off of the beach. Kepler and Blu touched down and hid behind trees that lay just off of the beach. They gazed at the bird as he stood and waited for his company to arrive. His features were strikingly similar to Kepler's: predominantly blue feathers, a yellowish stripe on his lower jaw, and a yellowish ring around his eye. However, his blue feathers had a greenish tint to them, and he was much shorter than Kepler.

**(Author's Note: Kepler is approximately 100 cm [39 in] in length. The other bird was about 75 cm [29.5 in] long. To put that in human terms, if Kepler was a 6 feet [1.82 m] tall man, then the other bird would be 4.5 foot [1.37 meters] man. That's quite a difference in height!)**

"I've seen his kind before," Kepler said quietly, puzzled. "He's so much like me."

"He's a relative to you," Blu replied quietly. "_Anodorhynchus leari. _The Lear's Macaw. Yours is _Anodorhynchus hyacinthus: _the Hyacinth Macaw. Mine is different: _cyanopsitta spixii_: the Blue Macaw."

**(Author's Note: For the sake of keeping the story in line with specifications from the film, Blu and Jewel will remain Blue Macaws, despite the audience knowing that are, in fact, meant to be Spix's Macaws.)**

While Blu was speaking, Kepler was out of focus, peering into his memory to try and find the time where he may have met a Lear's Macaw.

"He's rarer than I am," Kepler said coming back out of his memory. "What is he doing out here? They don't live in tropical forests. They live in rocky cliff areas in northeast Brazil! Well, when I was younger, that's where I heard they lived."

"One family might have made its way here," Blu added. "You never know. The sanctuary attracts a lot of birds."

"Sometimes," Kepler said, "too much ethnic diversity is bad for a forest. I'll explain later. Look!" He pointed over to the macaw. "Something's coming!"

Sure enough, Kepler was right. Out of the shadows and into the light came a group of unexpected visitors.

"_Os primatas_," Kepler muttered under his breath. In the light was a very familiar group of troublemakers.

"_Callithrix jacchus_," Blu muttered back. "The Common Marmoset. Well, we meet again."

"You know them?" Kepler asked with surprise.

"Of course I know them," Blu replied. "They messed up my first day in town! I won't forget that day." Thoughts of the fight flashed through his head.

The group of about 10 marmosets stood in front of the Lear's Macaw, and one of them stepped forward with an evil smirk on his face. Indeed, it was Mauro, the ringleader of the infamous marmoset group that had already made its purpose as a mercenary organization very clear. It was apparent that someone had hired them for something. Who could have hired them?

"Talk to us, kid," Mauro began speaking to the macaw. "Tell us how much you learned."

For just a mere second, the Lear's Macaw hesitated to answer. He did not want to make anything apparent that he was being closely monitored by Kepler and Blu from just beyond the trees. In addition, he did not want to give away the truth. Creating a well organized false story must have been the macaw's specialty, because he pulled one out faster than anyone had ever thought possible.

"Whoever gave you your intelligence on them was completely wrong!" the macaw blasted out to Mauro in a fantastic display of improvisation. "I arrived at the club and staked out as required for the designated amount of time. No one, in any way, shape, or form even came close to the entire facility! I was under the assumption that your reconnaissance skills were beyond reason, but it turns out I was severely mistaken!"

Mauro looked surprised, frustrated, and angry at the same time. "What is this?" he yelled at his group of marmoset friends as he turned around. "You told me that the insider had a definite bird's-eye view of them making their way back! How could his timeframe be off by so much?"

"He assured us that his intelligence was absolute!" one of the marmosets shouted back from the front of the crowd. "I do not see how his margin of error could have been so broad! After all, he was at the tallest point in the city, and came in direct contact with the group within the hour!"

Kepler's mouth dropped as he stared. Blu didn't understand why Kepler was showing such a reaction.

"Tracking that group was crucial to tonight's planned events!" Mauro blasted his team. "Peter gave us simple instructions, and we can't even follow those!" He sighed and turned back to the macaw. "You family is safe at home. Your work is done, Alberto. Carry on, boys!"

One of the marmosets pulled out an MP3 player and blasted the "Funky Monkey" song from the original film as Mauro and the rest of the group took off towards the highway. Kepler's eyes continued to stay widened, and his jaw continued to stay dropped for an entire minute after the marmosets left.

"Where are you guys?" the macaw yelled from the sidewalk.

Kepler snapped out of his trance. "Over here," Kepler announced. The macaw proceeded over to where Kepler and Blu were standing.

"I guess I have some explaining to do," the macaw said.

"Tell us everything," Kepler demanded. "This involves people we know."

"Alright," the macaw began. "The name's Alberto. I'm a Lear's Macaw. My family and I are from a nature reserve in northeast Brazil, but when I heard rumors of a sanctuary being built in Rio to protect endangered species, I insisted to my wife that I wanted to start my family there. We weren't able to nest in the area that we wanted, but it's still a better life than where we used to live.

"How did you run into the marmosets?" Kepler asked.

"That's what they are?" Alberto was surprised. "Well, just this morning I was away from home getting food for my wife and kids. When I arrived home, they weren't there. I figured that my wife took my kids out for some flying lessons, but after examining quite a bit of the forest, I knew something was up. I went down to the forest floor to check and see if they might have fallen or something. I got there and found no trace of them. While I was walking, I tripped over something and a group of figures ambushed me and knocked me out. When I woke up, I was laying on the beach here. They were standing around me. The leader guy said to me, 'We got a job for you'. I'm like, 'Don't hurt my family. I'll do whatever you want.'

"He tells me, 'I need to you go to Ipanema, in the south section of the city. There's a red beacon on top of a building. Next to that building is a market. Inside of that market is a structure currently housing some people that we need you to spy on for us. Just camp out, and within a few minutes, they should show up. Report your findings back to us in about 20 minutes. We'll be waiting here. We have your family. If you want to see them again, you need to follow our simple instructions. Got it?' I reluctantly replied, 'Yes', and I took off to look for the beacon.

"When I finally found it, I descended down into the market and lay down on top of the roof, waiting for someone to show up. Sure enough, a bunch of you guys came and went inside. I decided to listen in. I didn't hear much because of the music playing, but when you came up and spoke for whatever reason, I had heard what you guys were planning on doing. What exactly happened?"

"Long story short," Kepler replied, "many of our friends are dead, and it's because of that group you were working for. They mentioned Peter to you. Do you know anything about him?"

"Hadn't heard his name until they gave me instructions," Alberto replied. "Would you mind coming with me to check on my wife? I need to make sure that she's alright."

"Lead the way," Kepler said.

Alberto took off and Kepler and Blu followed. He led them past Christo, and Kepler noticed that Sanchez was still there.

"I'm not certain," Kepler whispered to Blu, "but Sanchez might be working with Peter and the marmosets. He might've tipped them off about our location. We have to warn everyone!"

"Get this guy's family to safety," Blu said, "then we'll deal with him."

They arrived at Alberto's tree on the north end of the sanctuary. Kepler and Blu touched down on a tree limb, and Alberto went inside.

"Alberto?" a female voice yelled with surprise.

"Yes, Felicia," Alberto replied to who seemed to be his wife. "It's me. I'm so happy to see you! And my kids! Oh it's so great to have you back in my arms!"

"Blu," Kepler said to Blu on the branch. "Stay with Alberto and Felicia. Bring them to the club. I'm going to deal with the rat myself."

"Will do," Blu replied, but Kepler had already taken off and headed out of the forest. Blu flew over to the nest to speak with Alberto and Felicia.

Kepler headed out of the forest and set course for Christo. He came from below the statue, in order to sneak up on Sanchez. He arrived at the statue, just outside of the banister. From where he hid, he could see two birds. One was Sanchez; his long neck gave it away. The other bird was normal sized and normal shaped. Whoever he was, he wasn't happy.

"That disgrace of a bird!" the other bird yelled to Sanchez. His voice was lower in tone and had an evil sound to it. "He lied to us, and now he got away!" He sighed and turned around to look out at the city. "So much has happened tonight. I guess you can't win everything all of the time. We've won plenty, though. There are contacts from everywhere that will soon learn of the Final Solution, and we will take this city back!  
I don't care how many people and birds we have to lay to waste to get it!"

"One step at a time, sir," Sanchez's voice was loud and clearly recognizable. "You said it yourself. Getting ahead of yourself is your downfall; only bear a load that you and your mind can handle."

"It really does have a nice ring to it," the other bird said in a nicer tone. (Wait for it…) "NOW GO FIND THAT BIRD AND PINION HIS WINGS! MAKE…HIM…suffer. I must retire for the night. Please bring me that bird's wings when I awake tomorrow morning at 6 AM sharp. I hear there's a funeral procession, and I wouldn't want to be late."

**(Author's Note: Pinioning is the act of removing a joint in a bird's wings, leaving them unable to fly.)**

"Right away sir," Sanchez said. The other bird took flight and headed north, while Sanchez took off and headed down to where Alberto lived.

"Blu," Kepler said under his breath to himself. "You better have gotten them out of there."

* * *

** Rats, rats, rats. They're everywhere! As the crap gets deeper, you find out more and more who you can't really trust! Let's hope that Blu did what he was supposed to!**

** I read your suggestions for crossovers and am taking them into consideration. For now though, my primary focus is this story. When I make the decision, you'll all be the first to know! Chapter 15 on the way!**


	15. Chapter 15: A Nasty Confrontation

Chapter 15

Blu entered Alberto's nest as he was celebrating his reunion with his wife and kids.

"Alberto?" Blu called to Alberto from the opening.

Alberto turned around while holding his wife in his arms. "You need something?" he asked in a kind tone.

"Kepler wants me to move you guys," Blu replied. "We should go to the club."

"I don't think going to a club would be good for our kids," Felicia said, looking at Alberto with her big bright green eyes.

"You're right, babe," Alberto replied, staring back into his wife's eyes with his own. "But they know much more about this situation than I do. We should probably listen to them."

"If you insist," Felicia responded in a sweet tone. "Let's go kiddies!"

"Mommy, mommy!" one yelled. "Pick me up!"

"Everyone can get on!" Alberto yelled happily to his kids as they climbed onto him and his wife.

"Ready?" Blu asked, preparing to take off from the tree.

"You lead the way!" Alberto replied.

Blu took off from the tree as Alberto and Felicia followed with their kids. Blu waited to ascend out of the forest to stay hidden from anyone that might have been waiting nearby. After a few seconds, Blu ascended out of the forest and into the open air above Rio.

"You kids okay back there?" Alberto joked to his children.

"Yes, dad!" one replied.

"It's great!" the other replied.

"Good to hear," Alberto said happily, as the group of birds drifted towards Ipanema and the samba club.

Kepler had taken off from Christo in hot pursuit of Sanchez, who was heading to Alberto's nest to pinion his wings. This was in retaliation for lying about intelligence he learned from the group of birds at the samba club. As they came closer and closer to the nest, Kepler continued to hope that Blu got Alberto and his family out of harm's way, as he had instructed.

Kepler kept a safe distance between himself and Sanchez, who had reached the nest. Within moments, Kepler leaped into the nest, right behind Sanchez. Sanchez was completely surprised by Kepler's entry.

"Mr. Kepler!" Sanchez said in a surprised and innocent tone. Kepler picked up on the change and knew that he was some kind of trained mercenary. "What brings you here?"

"I may be old," Kepler replied sternly, "but that doesn't make me stupid. I know everything."

"Then you must understand that there is no way to stop it," Sanchez's voice changed to the same evil and devious tone as before. "Your stupid friends never expected that anything of this magnitude could happen to them. That's why it's been able to work exactly as planned. The humans? Well, let's just say that they'll never see anything coming, either. For too long now, the world has underestimated us, for we are much more intelligent than they have perceived us to be. Their weak minds cannot comprehend that we, like so many other animals of the world, can disguise ourselves to act as if we are the dumber ones in the room. The reality is, in fact, the other way around. We can maneuver, attack, destroy, and kill, and we don't need any form of machine to do any of it. Peter has provided animals like me the opportunity, not to be part of the problem, but part of the solution. Join me, Kepler, and you too can see this fight from another perspective: the right perspective."

Kepler stood staring at Sanchez as the hate for him built up inside of him. "I wouldn't accept your offer if I were on the forest floor dying of disease!" He charged at Sanchez, placing a hard blow in Sanchez's chest, knocking him back.

"Your mistakes will cost you!" Sanchez yelled evilly as he fought back, throwing kicks and punches at Kepler. Some were blocked, but others managed to do damage on his chest and head, dazing him a bit and knocking him back. Kepler swung a talon at Sanchez's knees, slicing one of them and causing Sanchez to kneel over after yelling in pain from the gash in his knee. He responded by throwing a right to left uppercut across Kepler's head, knocking him into the side of the tree. Kepler's body had had enough fighting and over-exertion for one day. He found himself collapsing onto the floor of the hollow.

Kepler let out a loud, deafening shriek pointed towards the outside forest as Sanchez put his wing around Kepler's throat and squeezed tightly. Kepler soon found himself in a very bad position. Pinned on the ground, getting choked, and out of energy completely, Kepler, for a few moments, started to lose hope as the lack of oxygen to his brain caused the world around him to become white and blurry. He was going to die.

**(Author's note: Stereotypical events are about to occur. Sorry for the lack of originality.)**

With nothing left in him to keep going, Kepler stopped fighting back as his eyes rolled back into his head and he became extremely weak. As mere twinkles of life were left in Kepler, something happened that would prove to change Kepler's life. This life changing experience came in the form of a miracle.

As Sanchez was hell-bent on ending Kepler's life, two figures came from the forest, and one entered the tree hollow. With a quick and devastating strike, the incoming figure stabbed himself like a bullet into the center chest of Sanchez, knocking him back and causing him to lose his grip on Kepler's throat. He flew backwards and hit his head and neck off of the back of the hollow, more than enough to knock him clean out. The figure landed with a thump inside the tree and checked Sanchez's vital signs.

"He's alive," the figure said in a thick, aged Brazilian accent. "Raul! _Venha cá_!"

Another figure of similar size entered the massive nest and checked Kepler's vital signs.

"His altitude is too high!" the second figure yelled to the first. His voice was a similar Brazilian accent to the first, but was not as deep. "Get him down to sea level now! He needs oxygen!"

"On it!" the first figure yelled as he quickly hoisted Kepler onto his back and flew out of the hollow towards Ipanema beach. The second figure stayed behind to watch the body of Sanchez.

Blu, Alberto, Felicia, and the Lear's Macaws' kids coasted into the marketplace, and were greeted by none other than Luiz.

"Back again!" Luiz yelled happily, sitting near the club entrance. "I see that you brought some new friends!"

"More like protective custody," Blu replied, landing on the market ground. "These guys are targets. I need to talk to Kipo!"

"He's still inside," Luiz said, licking his chops.

"Thanks a ton, Luiz," Blu said as he patted Luiz on the head and ran past them. He looked behind him. "Come with me!" he commanded to the Lear's Macaws. Alberto quickly pulled his wife's wing towards the club, and the kids followed.

Blu ran inside and went over to Kipo, who was helping Nico and Pedro move the scaffold off of the dance floor and repair the roof. Blu caught Kipo's attention and Kipo put the scaffold down and looked at Blu as he approached.

"Kipo!" Blu yelled as he got close to Kipo. "Your friend is working with the bad guys!"

"What?" Kipo was very surprised. "Who?"

"Sanchez!" Blu bellowed. The slight talking in the club was silenced as everyone else in the whole room stared at Blu. "Kepler is up there now checking it out! I thought he was supposed to meet me here, but I don't know where he is now!"

"Blu!" Newton called from the bar. "Come with me now!"

"Stay with these guys," Blu told Alberto and Felicia. "They're reliable people. They'll take care of you." He took off towards the door with Newton.

"Tell me what happened," Newton said as they reached the outside of the club and took off.

"That guy back there," Blu explained, "was the guy that knocked the scaffold over. He was forced by a group of marmosets working for Peter to spy on us and give them information about our plans. He lied to help us out, but we found out that someone we know tipped them off. We took him home to get his family, and Kepler saw Sanchez up at Christo. We went to his house and Kepler went up to Christo to check it out. I got his family out of there, but Kepler never came back."

"Kepler is a good fighter," Newton assured Blu. "I've seen him in his glory days. He's taken out more than one in the past. He's lucky no one ever tried to get revenge."

"One guy tried earlier," Blu replied. "His name was Remy. Kepler asked if he was some guy's son."

"What was the guy's name?" Kepler inquired.

"Ronaldo," Blu replied again.

Newton looked ahead of him and tried to remember what happened. His face had a surprised look on it when he looked back.

"Oh yeah," Newton said in a low voice. "That was a nasty one. Ugh, man. I don't even want to describe that right now. It'll ruin my night."

"Help!" a voice screamed from in front of them. "Somebody help me, please!"

"Who's there?" Newton yelled back.

"Lucas?" the voice rang out again.

"Rodrigo?" Newton yelled back again.

"Help me with Kepler!" The voice was right in front of them now, and it was another Hyacinth Macaw.

"What happened?" Newton asked with surprise as he held Kepler's body up on the Hyacinth's back.

"I don't really know," the Hyacinth replied, "but he needs oxygen! He's on the verge of blacking out on me here! He's got a nasty bump on the back of his head, though! I think he got into a confrontation with someone a little bigger than he was! Raul is back at a nest on the north end watching the guy. Raul smashed right into the guy! Classic flying spear move!"

"Get him to the marketplace," Newton advised the bird now known as Rodrigo. "Ask for a guy named Ivan. He's a doctor. He'll take care of Kepler. Blu here will take you to him." He motioned his head to Blu.

"Come with me!" Blu told Rodrigo. Rodrigo willfully followed Blu back to the club, while Newton headed towards Alberto's tree to talk to Raul and help with Sanchez.

**More crazy stuff going on! Chapter 16 will be started soon!**


	16. Chapter 16: Questioning the Relationship

Chapter 16

Rodrigo trailed Blu as he led him to the samba club. Rodrigo was carrying a severely injured Kepler, who was on the verge of passing out.

"Follow that red beacon!" Blu yelled back to Rodrigo as he soared above the city streets of Rio.

"This Ivan guy better know what he's doing!" Rodrigo replied back. "I'm not leaving Diego in some quack's care!"

"I forgot," Blu said. "His birth name is Diego!"

"Did he give you whole story about his life?" Rodrigo inquired.

"He was," Blu replied, "but he got interrupted. It's a long story."

"We don't have time for stories," Rodrigo said sternly as they landed at the club. They both took hold of Kepler's limp body and carried him into the club. Luiz was sleeping again and did not hear them land.

"Ivan!" Blu yelled towards the bar as he entered the club. "Kepler needs help!"

Ivan hopped the counter of the bar and strode over to them. They had put Kepler down onto the ground.

"Let me see!" Ivan commanded them. "Give me some space!"

Blu and Rodrigo backed away as Kipo, Nico, Pedro, Alberto, Felicia and her kids also crowded around Ivan as he examined Kepler's head and body.

"He's taken one nasty hit here," Ivan pointed to the back of Kepler's head and held it up. Kepler moaned in unrecognizable sentences, with his eyes still partly in the back of his head. "He's been beaten up pretty badly on his chest, too. He might have some broken ribs. This hit on the head isn't consistent with brain damage, though."

"Then why is he acting like this?" Rodrigo demanded in a scared tone.

"I've heard stories," Ivan replied, "from my homeland involving this condition. Elders of communities were struck with massive shock after receiving a massive adrenaline rush following years of not keeping in good shape. It usually goes away in a few minutes time. How long has he been like this?"

"About ten minutes now," Rodrigo replied. "He was choked to the point of almost having no oxygen. We came in just in time."

"He's in shock," Ivan explained. "Let him lay down for a few minutes. He'll come to and start talking about the last thing he remembers. This was extremely common among elder birds in my community. You have to keep yourself in good shape. You can't just push yourself to the limit and expect no consequence. A fight wasn't enough to initiate this. Did he do anything else?"

"Not that I know of," Rodrigo replied.

"He was flying at some serious speeds to catch Alberto here," Blu pointed to the Lear's Macaw.

"That's what set him off then," Ivan said. "He'll think twice the next time he hits the afterburners after he hasn't hit them in years."

Suddenly, Kepler's body twitched, and his head moved to the side and coughed violently a few times. His eyes rolled out from the back of his head and returned to the front. They were dilated and flew around, trying to take in light as Kepler regained composure. Everyone jumped when he twitched, including Ivan.

"Get him off of me!" Kepler yelled loudly as he squirmed around on the floor. Ivan held him so he didn't hit his head off of the floor.

"Kepler!" Ivan yelled in Kepler's face. "You're alright! Calm down!"

Kepler stopped squirming and breathed heavily. His dilated eyes tried to focus in on Rodrigo. "Rodrigo?" he said with surprise.

"Yeah, Diego," Rodrigo responded with a little annoyance. "You can stop the episode now."

Kepler got up off of the ground, much to everyone's surprise, and walked over to Rodrigo. He put his wings on his shoulders. "You guys must've heard me then," Kepler spoke groggily and smiled at the bird who is believed to be a friend of some kind.

"I can't believe that I even remembered that old distress call," Rodrigo joked back, put his wings around Kepler and gave him a hug. "Looks like you found someone that you couldn't kick the living daylights out of. You alright bud?"

"Ready to go!" Kepler replied with enthusiasm. "Where is he? I'll give him a little talk."

"Lucas went to help Raul out," Rodrigo replied. "They'll be bringing the guy here."

"Blu!" Kepler summoned Blu's attention. "Go help the guys get the body back here!"

"Sure!" Blu said, running towards the exit of the club. Blu quickly took off and headed back towards the same direction he had gone before.

Shortly thereafter, Blu caught a glimpse of a large moving object coming towards him. He stopped and looked at it.

"Is that you guys?" Blu yelled to the incoming object.

"Man this guy is heavy!" Newton exclaimed as he moved closer to Blu. "Help us out here!"

"Gotcha," Blu said, taking hold of a side of Sanchez's body.

"I know where to go, Raul," Newton said to Raul. "Just follow mine and Blu's lead."

"I'm right with both of you," Raul replied.

Together, the three birds struggled to carry Sanchez's body back to the club. At last, after a long few minutes of flight, they arrived back at the market. They dragged Sanchez's body towards the club.

"Why is this guy so heavy?" Raul inquired rhetorically.

"Evil makes your self-persona fat," Newton replied anyway, "or something along those lines. I think I read that in a magazine way back when."

"I think I remember what you mean," Raul joked. "Good one, Lucas. Good one."

They arrived back inside of the club, and the group of birds inside gasped to see Sanchez being dragged in. Kipo rushed over and examined the body of the bird he thought was one of his best friends.

"Oh Sanchez," Kipo said glumly, pointing his face to the ground. "You were always such a hard worker. Why did you have to turn out evil?"

"We'll find out soon enough," Kepler said joining them around Sanchez's still body. "Good to have the entire group of guys together for a special occasion."

"So they are your friends?" Blu came into the conversation.

"I didn't get to finish my story before," Kepler replied, "but I did tell you the names of my group of friends. You know that my name was Diego. Newton here, his name's actually Lucas."

"We've met already," Newton added.

"The one that carried me back here," Kepler continued, "Rodrigo right here, his second name is Einstein."

"The pleasure's all mine," Einstein came in, as if on cue.

"Finally," Kepler explained, "The one that helped Newton carry our buddy Sanchez back, Raul, his second name is Plato."

"I still don't like that name," Plato joked.

"The point, Blu," Kepler said again, "is that we don't call ourselves by those second names. We use our original names on a personal level. I'll make sure I include that when I finish the story later."

"I understand now," Blu replied. "So maybe we should get Sanchez tied up before he wakes up and tries to escape on us."

"Good idea," Kepler acknowledged. "Ivan! You got bungee cords?"

"I have everything!" Ivan replied as he combed through his things under the bar and found two powerful bungee cords. "Perfect!" he yelled in success. He tossed them over the bar to Kepler, who caught them in mid air.

"Not even a bash on the head will make me miss that catch," Kepler joked. A couple of his friends laughed. "Drag him over here to the stage. We need some bright lights over top of him. Nico! Pedro!" He called to them. "I need these overhead lights to focus right on his face!"

"You got it!" Nico replied, running over to the DJ turntable. He moved a cable in a special fashion and turned the lights over top of Sanchez's face as Kepler pinned Sanchez's wings and body underneath the bungee cords. Within a minute or two, everything was set for an interrogation.

"Kill the rest of the club lights," Kepler instructed.

"Already ahead of ya!" Nico exclaimed as he hit the switches to turn off the rest of the club lights. The lights flashed off, and the rest of the club faded to dead silence.

"You sure we won't need the rest of Kipo's friends for this one?" Blu said quietly to Kepler.

"They need their rest for tomorrow," Kepler replied under his breath. "Besides, if one of them was bad, it wouldn't surprise me if all of them were bad, even Kipo."

"He's been with us since the very beginning," Blu defended Kipo. "He has nothing to do with any of this. Beat on him all you want, but I know that he's a genuine friend."

"I'm only looking out for our best interests," Kepler explained, still quiet. "When traitors pop up, you can usually follow the line straight to other people that they've been in contact with. I'm just saying that we should talk with Kipo anyways, just to see how he reacts."

"Let's deal with this guy first," Blu set Kepler's mind back on track. At that moment, thoughts of Jewel popped into his mind, and that he should probably check on her to make sure that she was okay. "I have some quick things to do," Blu finally managed to say to Kepler. He put his wing on Kepler's shoulder. "You got this."

Kepler put on a determined face. "I'll get everything we need," Kepler assured Blu. He walked out of the dark and into the spotlight, standing over Sanchez. Blu turned around and headed for the exit.

Once he reached outside, he took flight and quickly headed back towards the sanctuary. All he could think about were his wife and kids. Nothing else at that moment mattered anymore.

After a few minutes, he reached the sanctuary and made his way to his tree. He landed at the tree and went inside.

"Jewel?" Blu said looking around. There was no one in the tree. Blu was surprised.

_"Where would Jewel go if she wasn't at home?"_ Blu thought to himself. _"Christo? No, not with all the bodies. A friend? Maybe, but who are we close with that has room for more kids?"_

The thought of many kids made Blu realize. _"Rafael,"_ Blu finally figured out. He smiled and took off out of the tree and made his way to Rafael's large tree.

By the time Blu had arrived, all of Rafael's and Eva's kids were sound asleep, as well as Ramon, Gabriela, and Bruno. Jewel was sitting up next to Rafael, leaning on him. She was sleeping, but Rafael was awake and noticed Blu drop in.

"Is she awake?" Blu asked quietly, assuming that someone was awake. There was no answer, but Rafael stared at Blu, unknown to him. In addition, his face showed a slight agitation, something that Rafael is not known for.

"I guess none of you are awake," Blu said quietly but to himself as he turned around and was about to leave the nest.

"Don't move a muscle," Rafael whispered in an angry or disappointed tone. Blu became a tad bit afraid and looked back at a snail's pace.

"Oh, Rafael," Blu managed to say. "I didn't hear you there—

"—SHH!" Rafael snuffed Blu's explanation out like a light. "What are you doing here? What do you want?"

"I came looking for Jewel," Blu replied with surprise. He didn't know why Rafael was acting this way. "I figured she might've come here."

"Of course she came here," Rafael continued to rant. "At least here, there's someone who will actually care for her when she needs them."

Blu didn't understand why Rafael was blasting out on him like this. "Why are you acting like this?" Blu forced himself to say.

"A relationship requires both people to give up priorities to help each other out," Rafael replied. "Apparently, you find your ideals more important than your own wife. That just makes me worried a little, amigo. She might be the only female of your kind, but that doesn't mean she can't leave you."

* * *

**Rafael has made some good points questioning Blu's handling of his relationship. Meanwhile, the interrogation preparations have been made, and Sanchez will receive no mercy from Kepler. It's time to find out exactly what's going on in Rio, and soon, we will hear from the human world, as well. Chapter 17 is in the works!**


	17. Chapter 17: Interrogation

**(Note: This chapter stretches the T rating. It contains some descriptive gore, as well as some pushy adult themes. If you're younger, but want to read it anyway, more power to you. Viewer discretion is advised. If you're grown up and don't care about it, just start reading!)**

Chapter 17

Meanwhile, while Blu was being blasted by Rafael about his relationship, the interrogation had finally begun.

Kepler stood in the bright, blinding lights shining down on the face of Sanchez. Nico, Pedro, Kipo, Ivan, Newton, Einstein, Plato, Alberto and his wife and kids stood in the darkness in silence. For one, they were afraid of what was about to happen. At the same time, they were eager to see Kepler work his magic on Sanchez.

At last, Sanchez's eyes opened wide, and his pupils dilated as he frantically looked around the room, blinded by the overwhelming lights. He located Kepler, and tried to move. Realizing that he couldn't, he shook with fear. Kepler knew that he had Sanchez right where he wanted him.

"So," Kepler began with a serious tone. "It's good to see you, Sanchez. I can see you're in a pretty precarious situation there, buddy. Let me help you out."

Kepler proceeded to deck Sanchez in the lower beak, uppercut style. The hit made a cracking sound as Sanchez's lower jaw became partially cracked by the blow. Trying to show strength, Sanchez winced with pain, but did not scream.

**(Author's note: "Deck" (verb) is a slang term describing someone "punching someone really hard". Just in case anyone didn't know.)**

"Don't pretend to be a soldier," Kepler taunted the injured Sanchez in a authoritative tone. "You're nothing more than a peon persuaded by a radical leader as a result of his weak mind!"

Again, Kepler violently hit Sanchez in the beak, this time his upper beak. He broke it as well, and Sanchez began to bleed. He wept quietly trying to hold back the pain.

"Maybe you can't see what I'm trying to get through to you!" Kepler blasted right in Sanchez's face. He was now getting emotional about his interrogation. "You are out of options! I need you to FOCUS." He grabbed Sanchez's broken beak and pulled it up closer to himself. Sanchez breathed hard to keep from screaming with pain. "There's still time for you to save yourself!" He dropped Sanchez's head back down. "I'm right here! Speak on your own behalf! I wanna hear what YOU have to say! I'm getting older by the minute and I don't have forever!"

Sanchez started to weep loudly and psychotically. Kipo couldn't watch anymore, so he turned around and stared away into the dark.

"You can't speak, can you?" Kepler said rhetorically. Sanchez shook his head, still crying.

"Now you can feel it!" Kepler exclaimed. "Now you understand how it feels to have your life on the line, and the inability to speak and save yourself! It truly is the world's worst feeling. A paradox is both terrible and inescapable; two things that make the mind lose sanity in just a matter of seconds!" He laughed a little. "I must truly admit, you are doing an excellent job at staying with me here. I figured your head would've left the room after just a minute or two, but you're still here! Why do you think that is?"

"Mm mm mm," Sanchez muffled to the tone change of 'I don't know'. He was still in tears.

"Well I can't ruin the surprise now!" Kepler said to him, throwing a cliffhanger. "Let's keep talking. I like this! It's a lot of fun! Well, maybe for me. I'm not so sure about you. So tell me! Did your friend Peter recruit you?"

"Mm mmm," Sanchez replied shaking his head.

Kepler pulled his beak close to him again, causing Sanchez to weep again. "I don't think you're in a position that gives you any grounds to lie at all. So why would you even try to put something like that through me?" He let him go again. "Personally, I feel that I've been a little kind to you so far. You've got plenty more things on your body that are still quite healthy. It would be a shame if I had to do any more than I've done. I can tell, beyond any doubt, that you are not only in severe pain, but you are fearing me now to a point where, even if your beak weren't broken, you still wouldn't be able to put sentences together to answer my questions! As I can see, though, you seem to be able to answer yes or no questions, so let's answer a few of those, shall we?"

Kepler thought for a few seconds. "Then again," Kepler continued, "I really don't have much to ask you. Since you can't answer any questions that have complex answers, I really can't push you for that. I'll have to change my course of action. I'm going to tell you what I know. Just sit back and listen. It won't take long."

Sanchez continued to sit there, though it's not like he could do anything else.

"Let's start from the beginning."

Blu continued to stand in Rafael's tree in the sanctuary. All of the kids were asleep, Eva was fast asleep, and Jewel had not woken up, either.

"I don't think you understand," Blu tied to explain to Rafael in a whisper. "We've had a bad night, whether you realize it or not. My wife lost her memory of me, my kids are probably scarred for life from the terror attack, and I had to end someone else's life to save my family! What makes you think that I don't care?"

Rafael stood up without making a sound, and grabbed hold of Jewel with the slightest of ease. He allowed her to lie down where he was sitting.

"Amigo," Rafael whispered, "you perform well under pressure. You passed the test." He smiled.

"You were testing me?" Blu was surprised. "You sounded pretty serious."

"I'm just a grumpy old man," Rafael replied. "I already talked to Jewel about the situation. Everything's fine! Sometimes, you're gonna have your differences, but you'll end up overcoming them all for each other and your kids! I've never lost faith in you before, amigo. Neither has she!" He pointed to Jewel. "She was calm when she got here earlier. She wants to apologize for being hard on you before. Do you accept her apology?"

"I accepted it before the words came out of her mouth," Blu said smiling.

"I knew you'd say that amigo!" Rafael was glad. "Since you guys have had such a rough night with each other, why don't you just take her and sleep in your own nest tonight? I'll keep a watch over the kids for ya. I'm getting way too old for partying!"

Blu laughed a little. "I would only do something like that if it wasn't a bother," he added.

"No problem at all," Rafael assured him. "They're welcome over here any time you need your space. Just consider me your babysitter in a way!"

Blu walked over to Jewel quietly and put her in his talons. "I'll be back in the morning," Blu whispered. "Bright and early. The funeral's tomorrow morning at 7."

"Don't bother," Rafael replied. "I'll bring them to Christo for you. Just take care of Jewel. She needs some serious rest. Be there for her, amigo."

"I will," Blu replied, taking off from the tree with his wife in his talons. While he flew, he had vivid memories of when he had just learned to fly, and was carrying Jewel in has talons after saving her. They made him feel great.

When he arrived back at the tree, he placed Jewel on the floor with as much care as he could. From all of the movement, Jewel woke up without Blu noticing. Turned the other way, he did not expect to feel wings over his shoulders and around his neck. She pulled up close behind them.

"Hey," Jewel said in her quiet, angelic voice.

Blu was surprised and comforted at the same time. He smiled and turned around, coming face-to-face with his wife. "Hey babe," he managed to say before putting his wings on the sides of her head, getting stuck in the moment. "Sleep well?"

"All I dream about is you anymore," Jewel replied in the same attractive voice and facial expression that Blu couldn't stop loving from the beginning. "So, I guess you could say that I slept well."

"The kids are staying at Rafael's for the night," Blu said, starting to get ideas. "They'll be safe there."

"Hmmmm," Jewel drew out the sound in a (for lack of a better term) seductive manner. "Now why in the world would he make an offer like that?" Then came the smirk.

"I don't know," Blu murmured, caught up in Jewel's eyes for the 50th time that night.

"So I heard this rumor," Jewel smirked, "that humans, well…" Her voice trailed off from awkwardness.

Blu, for once in his life, recognized lingo from something that he didn't discuss often. "Copulate for fun?" Blu finished the sentence. His inner animal instincts took control of his mind.

"Oh man do you turn me on!" Jewel yelled, pulling Blu in for a huge, passionate kiss.

Kepler stood over Sanchez in the light at the club, continuing to be watched eagerly by the crowd in the club. (I really don't want to repeat all of the names.)

"So," Kepler started. "My story is not going to come from my mouth. You see, I haven't been here as long as you think I have. In fact, I just strolled into town this evening, so my understanding of the entire course of events has been spotty. For that, I have to call upon some friends." He turned around and stared into the darkness. "Nico?"

"Yeah?" Nico called back from the darkness.

"Come up here," Kepler commanded. Nico came out into the light, and Kepler turned back to Sanchez. "I need a few minutes to be briefed on the entire situation tonight." He turned to Nico and walked into the darkness. Nico followed him.

Time seemed to slow down for Sanchez, who was beaten, broken, and afraid for his well-being as the blinding lights continued to shine down on top of him. At last, after what seemed like an eternity (but was, in reality, under 10 minutes), Kepler returned to the bright area in front of him.

"I seem to know what I'm talking about now," Kepler smirked evilly at Sanchez, who was still traumatized by the entire event. "So approximately a month ago, a large number of residents here in the forest were freed from the grip of smugglers by a dear friend, known simply as Blu. Many here know him on a personal level, though I have had the chance to learn quite a bit about him in just my first night here. He's done so many good things for the birds here in Rio, and for that, he's been rewarded. He lives in a huge tree with a beautiful wife and beautiful children to call his own. At the same time, he's endangered! He's the last known male of his species.

"It definitely makes an impression on him. Trust me, I've seen it. I know that he longs to have a massive number of birds like him, but he can't have it. He hasn't been given that gift. So, he survives with what he has, and he's grateful for ANYTHING that he can get. And then, there are birds like you." He let out a sarcastic chuckle. "Oh yes, and then there are birds like you! They've got a word for things like you in the human world: SLIME. Or better. DEGENERATES. You like those words? They describe you pretty well.

"I digress. At the same time, the smugglers had a representative in the bird world, known as Nigel. This crooked avian apparently has been lurking around for quite some time now. He must be pretty good at manipulating people, because he was able to build himself a little army of crooked marmosets and block out everyone's sunlight. Well that guy was supposed to be taken care of, because he went down in a plane crash! I'm getting this little feeling though, that you may know something about him."

"Mm mmm!" Sanchez's head shook wildly, trying to signal a 'no'.

"I believe you," Kepler admitted, "but the only reason I do is because I know that you only reported to Peter. He set it up that way for a reason. Nigel's trying to hide his actions and whereabouts. I have a witness that believes that he saw Nigel head into the airport, bound for America. It appears that he must've recruited Peter from somewhere, but that's not important. What was important, however, was that Peter and Nigel needed some new peasants to do all the newly created dirty work. But why would they have picked you? You shouldn't have been a loner, so why were you?

"Kipo and all of his buddies were one happy group of friends. Where were you? Did you not like them? Were they not your type? Or, did they have something against you? That's it, isn't it? You're fanatical. You despise others' happiness because you can't seem to find anything that gives happiness to you. So they shunned you. Joining Peter's regime was the only real option for you. It made you feel like you were no longer a 'no one'. Now, you were a 'someone'.

"Peter was tasked with designing a first strike, while you were given the order to make some new friends that you could trust. At the same time, you had to infiltrate the enemy's friend group. But if they knew who you were, then why would they accept you into their friend group?" He stopped and thought for a moment, and then something came to him. "Maybe because you lied to them, Eduardo."

The group in the club gasped. Sanchez's eyes went wide, and Kipo came running out into the light.

"I knew that I knew you from somewhere!" Kipo yelled while pointing at the stunned Sanchez. "But, how did you know that his name was Eduardo?"

"I know because this conspiracy is getting stranger by the minute," Kepler replied. "His grandfather's name was Eduardo. I knew him from my first days back in Rio after the service. We weren't exactly 'welcomed' to the Rio community. There were some things that we had to take care of." He turned his head and looked at Sanchez, who was breathing heavy with anger. His face was getting red, and it was as if he wanted to rip out of the bungie cords and rip Kepler to pieces.

"Somebody hold this guy down!" Kepler motioned for someone to go over to Sanchez. "I'm not finished with my story yet." Out from the darkness came Newton and Einstein, who proceeded to grab Sanchez's wings and keep them held down beneath the bungee cords. Sanchez struggled to try and get free.

Kepler leaned in closely to Sanchez's face. "You managed to find more people that had things against me," he said in a low tone, "and you turned them into an army. These people around me trusted them with everything that they had. They lived among them. And then you perform these acts of…" His voice trailed off as he started to tear up. "…pure evil. You got so many killed. Even some of your friends! We don't even know who most of them are in that pile up there, and yet we're still giving them a righteous burial?" The tears were flowing down Kepler's face, overcome with emotion from staring straight into the face of evil and betrayal. "What kind of thing are you?" He finally backed off from Kepler's face and brushed his tears.

"There's a thing in the human world. It's called the justice system. I read about it in my studies while I was in the service. I looked up the worst possible crime that could be committed, and I found something that can directly reflect your actions. The humans call it 'Crimes against Humanity', but I've decided that it relates to you on every note, except one. We are not humans, rather we are avians. I never imagined, until tonight, that any birds were capable of what was done to so many innocent bystanders. For that, I read you the lone crime of which you are accused of. Mr. Eduardo the Third, you are hereby indicted on one count of crimes against avianity. The evidence is substantially against you, to a point of which you cannot fight for your innocence. For this, I hand you your sentencing."

**The long spiel is finally over! This took forever to write. I apologize, everyone. Last week was a seriously tough week for me. I had so many things going on, and I had so much to write. You can feel everything that's bubbling up to the surface of the story now, and I invite you all to vote on the outcome of what happens next.**

** Decide Sanchez's fate as part of your review. You can write anything you want (I invite you all to be creative), although there are only two main choices that I want all of you to decide on: life, or death? That will be all up to you guys, so get all of your friends to vote on it too! I'd like to see a huge turnout for the decision. The vote count will be posted at the beginning of the next chapter. Remember that I need your votes before I can start writing again.**

** Next thing. The losing side will have its outcome written out and uploaded into the Deleted Scenes story that I will create when the time arises.**

** FINAL THING! I smell something. It smells rather fruity, but ugh. It's very sour. In a mysterious voice: Coming soon.**

** Oh, and Chapter 18 will be out when voting closes.**


	18. Chapter 18: Face Fate, and Goodnight

Chapter 18

"Death," Kepler snarled in a low tone. He pulled out a shard of steel, which he kept underneath some of his feathers. He charged at Sanchez, pulling his wing back to get momentum for when the blade thrashed through Sanchez's body.

Newton recognized what Kepler was trying to do, and acted as quickly as he could. As Kepler reached Sanchez, the blade was already coming forward. Just an inch before the blade entered Sanchez's chest, Newton grabbed Kepler's wing and prevented him from completing the thrusting motion. Kepler tried a few times to push the blade more, but it was no use. Newton's grip was too strong.

Newton looked straight into the face of Kepler while he held his wing back. Kepler was very tense, and sweat poured down from his head. He was also breathing heavy.

"Kepler," Newton said to Kepler as he used his other wing to turn Kepler's head towards his own. "I think it's time that you chose something other than death. You're older now. You're wiser, more aware, and more intelligent than you ever were. Prove that by dropping that shard on the floor. I want you to dispose of that thing—

"—not before I dispose of this waste of a life!" Kepler interrupted, still trying to thrust the shard forward. Again, Newton stopped him.

"There were times in your life where it was necessary," Newton tried to reason. "This. is. not. one of those times. You talk about the human justice system? Go ahead. But make sure that you remember that there are sentences other than death. Your rough past has clouded your judgment on this one, bud. You need to listen to me here."

Kepler's eyes stared off as he stopped thrusting the shard. Sanchez breathed a massive sigh of relief as he looked down to the ground in guilt. Kepler let go of the shard, and it hit the ground and made a 'ping' noise similar to a coin hitting a surface. Kepler sat down on the stage and stared at the ground, thinking about what Newton had said. A lone tear ran down his right eye, as he moved his wing up to it to wipe it away in an attempt to hide it.

Newton stood in front of Sanchez and Einstein continued to hold Sanchez down. "You probably realize now why he did that," he said down to Sanchez, who seemed to listen intently. "This isn't the first time that Kepler has had to deal with someone like you. There have been others. Liars, traitors, and rats. He was a young man, and he dealt the right punishment according to the damage they had done. They, too, were trusted by Kepler, and they paid the price for giving reasons not to. Now, Kepler's older. We're all older. We've learned a thing or two. We were young and energetic, and we did what we wanted to. We know, now, that there is an unwritten code in the avian world. An avian should never try to take the life of another avian. This excludes defending yourself. You put your own agendas before the well-being of others. That's not a crime. But, when your own agenda is conspiracy to harm others, then I have no sympathy. We're setting an example with you. We're going to show the avian world of Rio de Janeiro that we CAN show mercy to those that never did. For that, a fate worse than death is to be chosen for you." He turned to Kepler, who was looking right at him. Newton smirked at Kepler, and Kepler knew exactly what he meant.

"Pinioning," Kepler said as he got up off of the stage and headed over to Sanchez. The crowd gasped and Sanchez whined, screamed, and tried to get away. Einstein held him down. Kepler turned his right wing into a fist-like form. "Enjoy this," he proclaimed as he punched Sanchez right in the face again, knocking him out this time. Newton undid the bungee cords, and Kepler picked up his shard of metal. The two of them took a wing of Sanchez and dragged him out of the club. The rest of the group followed outside to watch.

"Teamwork wins the day!" Kepler shouted. "One, two, three!"

They lifted Sanchez up into the air with care and headed across the city. Within a few minutes, they were almost at Sugarloaf Mountain.

"How did we think of the same place to put him?" Kepler yelled over to Newton.

"Great minds think alike!" Newton replied with a laugh. "This way, it'll be his very own little gate of Hell up here!"

They both let out a quick laugh as they reached the top of Sugarloaf and landed on the balcony looking over the city.

"I can't do this," Kepler said handing the shard to Newton. "I've never done it."

"I've seen it enough times to know how," Newton replied, taking the shard. With careful precision, he sliced into the pinion joint of Sanchez's wing, cutting and removing it. He tossed it over the edge of the cliff, and it plummeted to the water below. Again, he did the same thing with the second wing. Before he knew it, Newton was covered in Sanchez's blood.

"These cuts will close quickly," Newton said quietly. "He's not going anywhere anytime soon."

"Someone's going to find him eventually," Kepler said. "He'll scream for help or hop on the cable car. He'll tell Peter about what we did!"

"By the time he tells Peter," Newton assured Kepler, "we would have already been to him first. Now, let's end this night already."

Kepler and Newton took off and headed back to the club. Along the way, they drooped down to the ocean so Newton could clean his underbelly. When they arrived back, everyone was back inside, and Luiz was once again awake outside.

"Where were you guys at?" Luiz greeted them as they landed.

"We had to deal with a loose end," Newton replied. "We're packing up and leaving in a few minutes. You gonna be alright here tonight?"

"I'll be alright," Luiz replied, licking his chops. "Thanks for the concern though."

"Thanks for looking out for us tonight," Kepler said to Luiz. "We can't thank you enough."

"It all just comes with the role of 'guard dog'," Luiz joked. "Sleep tight fellas."

Kepler and Newton headed back inside the club, and found the lights back on. Everyone was waiting for the two Hyacinths.

"Reminder to everyone here," Kepler announced to everyone. "The funeral is tomorrow at 7 A.M. sharp! You should all be early for final preparations! The rest of the families already know, so expect there to be a massive turnout! I will see you all in the morning!"

Everyone headed for the doors, receiving farewells from Kepler and the rest of the Hyacinths.

"Thank you for understanding," Alberto said shaking Kepler's wing. "We will be there tomorrow. I will be helping out with anything else that you need, as well. Don't hesitate to ask me."

"We won't," Kepler replied as Alberto took off with his wife and kids.

"I don't know how to recover after knowing that I was deceived by a freak," Kipo said to Kepler in a disappointed tone. "I really don't."

"You have all of your other friends beside you," Kepler tried to cheer him up. "They'll always be there for you. It's in the past now. He's not gonna come back any time soon."

"I hope," Kipo said. "I'll be up early tomorrow. Expect me and the boys there before 7."

"Will do," Kepler said. Kipo left and took off.

Now, the only ones left inside the club were Kepler, Newton, Einstein, Plato, Nico, Pedro, and Ivan.

"I hope to see the three of you tomorrow morning as well!" Kepler shouted to Nico, Pedro, and Ivan.

"I would never miss such an important occasion!" Ivan replied. "I'll be there if you need me!"

"We'll be there too!" Nico replied as well.

"Yeah!" Pedro replied, turning off some equipment. "We won't miss it!"

"Excellent!" Kepler said. "We're heading out now. Peace out, boys."

"Later!" Pedro said back. Kepler and his three other friends exited the club and passed by a sleeping Luiz. They proceeded to take off and head towards the forest.

A few moments later, Nico walked out of the club and over to Luiz.

"You should come inside," Nico said to Luiz. Luiz woke up and looked around.

"What did you say?" Luiz asked groggily.

"I think you'll be safer if you sleep inside the club with us," Nico repeated himself.

"Yeah," Luiz said, stretching his legs and getting up. "Right behind you."

Nico and Luiz went back into the club, and Luiz laid back down on the floor.

"We'll be right in the other room if you need anything," Ivan said, following Nico and Pedro into a hidden room underneath the bar.

"Night, guys," Luiz said to them as he shut his eyes again. Ivan closed the trapdoor, and the three of them hit the hay in an instant.

Up in the air, the four Hyacinths were almost home to their massive nest in the far northern sector of the sanctuary.

"I can't believe that we got ourselves into this!" Kepler joked to his friends. "I come to this marketplace to meet the grandson of an old friend of ours, and I get sucked into this huge conspiracy! I have to end the lives of some fanatical birds and all of these other shenanigans."

"Looks like you've had quite the night!" Newton joked. "Better than ours, of course."

"We just keep wishing for Alexandre to come back," Einstein added. "Poor guy's been stuck in the states for thirty years, and we don't even know if he's alive or not!"

"He always promised us that if we ever got separated," Plato said, "he'd go to the ends of the earth to get back here."

"Would he even know where to go?" Kepler inquired.

"He's good old Alex," Plato replied. "He'll find us. It's not like he was ever any good at anything other than recon. I mean, come on! He flew right into those bullets! Shows you how coordinated he is!"

Everyone there laughed as they landed into their massive treetop open nest. The tree was the highest in the area, and the nest was positioned so that the entire downtown area of Rio was visible, as well as the Costa e Silva Bridge.

"Guys," Kepler said, lying down, "today's been more exciting than anything else in a long time. I think we should take advantage of what we've got going for us. This new generation has heart and prosperity, but it also has evil and foolishness. We need to be there to show them the right way. Doing this tomorrow morning will be the first step to helping them along their path to recovery."

"Well said, freedom fighter," Einstein joked. Everyone laughed. "We need some rest for tomorrow. Just get some sleep, boys."

"Couldn't have said it better," Newton proclaimed. "Night, guys."

The four friends closed their eyes and drifted off to sleep. The entire forest world of Rio lay quiet and still, as gentle winds blew across the treetops and bugs chirped a symphony. The first day had run its course, and the Sun eagerly awaited its coming the next morning.

Hours earlier, the truck had just blown up in an alleyway near downtown Rio. Agents Connor and Bill stood near Tulio and Linda.

"Five steps?" Tulio asked, completely surprised. "How could it be five steps?"

"His plan is unfolding as we speak," Bill explained, "yet we have no leads as to where it is going. Let him run and hide behind his police department. When I come back, I'll have a whole slew of agents from around the CIA here in Rio. I don't want any information given to anyone about this operation. Don't tell politicians, don't tell police, and don't tell the courts. There are bound to be rats everywhere, so don't bother them while they're in their cages. Connor and my cadet agent will stay here in the city and take orders directly from back home." He reached into his police car and pulled out a satellite phone. He handed it to Tulio. "Use this to contact myself or Connor if you get wind of anything suspicious or if you feel you're in danger. Don't hesitate to call, because if you do, you might not live to see another day."

"We won't hesitate," Tulio assured Bill.

"Do you need a ride home from Connor?" Bill asked.

"We have a bike right over there," Tulio replied, pointing to his motorcycle that was still leaning up against the wall.

"Alright," Bill said, shaking Tulio's hand. "It's been good seeing you once again. I will be back in no more than a week. I have to help Anne arrange for Richard's death and see the funeral through. One that's done, I'll be signing the papers to get more men down here to deal with this problem. This issue's in the hands of the CIA now. We'll get this done. Until then, have a good one." He saluted Tulio and Linda and got into the back seat of the black sedan. Connor and the cadet got in as well, started the car, and drove away, leaving Linda and Tulio in the street.

Tulio's gun was still on the ground marked with tape. Tulio bent down and grabbed the gun. He placed it back into his holster and stood back up.

"What should we do?" Linda wondered.

"We should go home and get some rest," Tulio replied. "The boat is still open for tomorrow, remember!"

"We'll have plenty of fun!" Linda proclaimed, kissing Tulio. They walked over to the motorcycle and got on. Tulio started it in one kick, and he headed off back home.

A few minutes later, they reached their apartment. Tulio walked the bike into the alleyway beside their apartment and followed Linda inside. Before she entered their bedroom, Linda walked into Fernando's bedroom. He was awake and was reading a book with a light on by his nightstand.

"Hey honey," Linda said kissing Fernando on the cheek. "Feeling better?"

"A little bit," Fernando replied with a small smile. "I should be alright by tomorrow morning."

"Great!" Linda said cheerfully. "We're going out on the water tomorrow, so be ready for a day of fun!"

"Sounds great!" Fernando said excitedly. "I think I'm going to go to bed now so I can feel better in the morning. Night, mom."

"Goodnight sweetie," Linda said walking out of Fernando's room and closing the door. When she entered her room, Tulio was already in bed. Linda quickly brushed he teeth and used her mouthwash, and it reminded her of how she used to do that every single day with Blu, morning and night. She sighed and got into bed with Tulio.

"Goodnight, honey," Tulio said to Linda, getting comfortable.

"Night," Linda said happily as she turned off the light and got comfy as well. The house went quiet, and their day had ended. Lights gleamed across the city of Rio de Janeiro, and city silently awaited the morning sunrise.

**Can you guys believe it? Day one just ended! Plans have been made, and everything seems to be running smoothly! In your review, tell me what you hope to see in Day Two. The next two chapters I will release will be those of my second story, "Unsung Tales: The Outtakes of 'Love, War, and Sacrifice'". It will contain the alternate reality of Kepler's fate, as well as the long awaited ****_Citrus limon _****(scientific name for the lemon) ;) Stay tuned for the new story! **


	19. Chapter 19: Right Under Their Noses

**Well, now that the Grapefruit is out of the way, it's time to get back to the main course. I've co-oped with some other writers, and they will be making appearances in the story in the form of their flagship characters! I will be thanking them at the end of the chapter they first appear in.**

Chapter 19

The Earth rotated on its axis, and the sun finally rose once again over the city of Rio de Janeiro. The first few glimmers of light reflected back on the minute condensation that accumulated on the forest foliage during the night. The next few glimmers skimmed across the crystal clear ocean water, in addition to the waters of the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas. Soon enough, a steady glimmer swept the horizon, and the daytime had officially commenced.

Normally, the birds of the forest sing a morning hymn to celebrate the new day. Today, however, was a major exception. Too many friends were lost to even consider singing a good-spirited song. "Real in Rio" would have to wait for another day.

The older generation of the forest, which included birds like Rafael and the Hyacinths, were the first to rise that morning.

**(Note: Rafael isn't near as old as the Hyacinths, but because of his relative age to his maximum life span, he is definitely considered as one of the oldest of the group of birds. The next birds to reach the full adult stage would be Nico and Pedro, again due to their lifespans.**

Rafael may have been a heavy sleeper, but that had nothing to do with his internal clock. As the sun peaked over the horizon for the first time in the day, Rafael's internal clock woke him up. His eyelids spread open and revealed his eye glancing out at the open hole of his tree. His arms were around Eva, and his 18 children were cuddled together in a corner of the tree. Blu's children were also cuddled up with the other kids.

In an effort to avoid waking her up, Rafael carefully moved his wing off of Eva and slowly stood up in the nest. No matter how hard he tried, it wasn't enough. Eva's eyes opened and scanned the room for activity. Her eyes locked onto Rafael, and she sat up, stretched her wings, and squinted.

"Going somewhere?" Eva inquired as Rafael stood in the opening staring outside.

Rafael took a quick glance back at his mate and continued looking outside at the rays of emerging sun. "I have a funeral to attend, my love," he replied. "Those poor birds from last night deserve a well-fitted ceremony. I have to do my part as a member of this forest family."

"That's the selfless husband I know," Eva said, smiling. She stood up and walked over to Rafael, who looked back at her and smiled as well.

"I shouldn't be long," Rafael said to his wife. "I'm only there for the ceremony. After they finish, I'll be back home with you, and everything will be just fine."

"You can't pretend nothing happened, though," Eva added. "If they need you, then that doesn't mean you can abandon them in their time of need. I love you, but that doesn't mean that I am more important than other people who count on you! I am more than capable of defending myself. You've never given me that chance! You don't trust me."

"Eva my love," Rafael stated. "It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that I don't want to risk losing you like Blu almost lost Jewel!"

"You need to stop worrying so much," Eva assured Rafael. "Now, don't be late to this. It'll make you look bad." She giggled a little.

Rafael giggled a little, too. "Have it your way," Rafael smiled. "Take care my love." He kissed his wife on the beak and took off from the tree towards Christo.

As one would probably guess, the Hyacinths defined late as "a half an hour before starting time". Although they showed age in their body fitness and wellness, they showed traits of adolescents in their spirits, appearances, and personalities. Even their sleeping patterns made them seem too energetic for their ages.

Rewinding to about 10 minutes before Rafael first woke up, Kepler's abnormal habits opened his eyes before the day had even really begun. His pupils dilated to bring in more light in an effort to see in near total darkness. Thankfully, some resonating light from the city allowed his sight to improve enough to see his friends. Kepler quickly stretched and stood up in his nest. The rustling stirred his friends in their sleep, and Newton was stirred enough to wake up as well.

"Diego?" Newton whispered to Kepler. "What are you doing? What time is it?"

"I believe it's almost sunrise," Kepler whispered in reply. "Get the guys up. I'm heading up to Christo to watch over the bodies. I feel like today is going to be beautiful. Great day for revenge!"

That sudden burst of motivation Kepler let out woke up Einstein and Plato, who stood up in surprise.

"Why are we up so early?" Einstein said as he scratched his head and rubbed his eyes.

"It's not even dawn yet, Diego!" Plato complained. "Come on!"

"When you ladies are ready," Kepler joked, "I'll be up at the statue." He took off and left his friends in the nest.

"He can be such a pain in the cloaca sometimes," Plato complained some more.

"Yeah well so can you," Newton smiled, joking and defending Kepler at the same time. "I'll be up there with him while you two decide who's got the biggest set of balls." He took off from the nest.

"But we don't have balls!" Plato yelled to him. "We're not human!"

"You've got testes though, right?" Newton stopped and looked back at them.

Plato sighed. "Yeah, we do."

"Good," Newton said, turning back towards the statue.

"Let's just go now before they start taunting us even more," Einstein said to Plato. He took off and followed his friends.

"Fine," Plato finally gave in. He took off and followed, as well.

Nico, Pedro, and Ivan lived underground, so sunlight wasn't going to wake them up. For that, they needed aid from a device of human origin: an alarm clock.

The alarm was set for 6:00 A.M. The sun had already been out for about ten minutes, and most of the sanctuary was now beginning to get up. If anyone wanted to look their best for a funeral, they would need some time to do that. So, as the alarm startled the three samba club owners, they simultaneously realized that they should get ready. They said nothing to each other and emerged from their hideout under the bar.

Luiz was already awake and prancing around the place when the three emerged. It only took a couple of seconds for Luiz to notice them.

"Morning boys!" Luiz greeted them happily. "Ready for another fun-filled day in Rio?"

"Gotta get ready!" Nico said quickly, running to the entrance with Pedro with Ivan. "Can't talk now!"

"Oh yeah," Luiz realized. "Sorry. I'll just watch the club for you then!" By the time he finished, the three were out the door.

They quickly flew to a freshwater tributary of the Lagoa. The three of them wasted no time cleaning themselves off.

"Whoa!" Pedro finally broke the silence. "Something just hit me. When's the last time that we ate?"

"Probably before sunset yesterday," Nico replied, cleaning himself. "We were way too busy to eat! But now I'm starving! You know what? We'll grab some stuff from the market after the funeral, and we'll invite everyone for a reception. You know, to take their minds off of the tragedy?"

"That brings good business!" Ivan exclaimed, finishing his bath and shining like a star. "I feel like a new bird!"

"I'm ready to go," Pedro said flapping his wings to dry them.

"Yeah I'm good, too," Nico followed up. "You ready, Ivan?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Ivan replied. The three took off and headed up towards Christo. As they flew, birds passed by them, heading down towards the same tributary.

"You think they were cleaning themselves for the funeral too?" Nico asked openly.

"There were a lot of lost friends in that pile," Ivan replied. "It wouldn't surprise me if the entire community came to pay respects."

A couple of minutes later, Nico, Pedro, and Ivan arrived at Christo to see the Hyacinths. Accompanying them were Kipo, his gang of spoonbills, and Rafael. Everything seemed on time and on schedule, except for one thing.

"Where are Blu and Jewel?" Nico asked as he and his friends arrived.

There must be other forces in this world that cannot be comprehended, because at roughly the same time that Nico said that, Blu's eyes opened wide in his nest. He had overslept due to his run-in last night with some extra-curricular activities. His wings were still around Jewel, who was sleeping peacefully. Blu glanced outside and saw the sun. He immediately realized that he was supposed to be at the funeral early. He pulled his wings off of Jewel and leapt up onto his feet. The movement woke Jewel up, and she rolled over and looked at Blu.

"What's wrong?" Jewel asked, not realizing yet.

"We have to be at the funeral!" Blu yelled. He took off towards a small creek near the sanctuary. Jewel immediately remembered as well, and she took off and followed Blu.

As Blu flew towards the creek, more faint images flashed through his mind. _Humans. Cages. Trapped. Terror. _He quickly shook it off and splashed down into the creek to wash himself off. Jewel soon followed.

"Are you super hungry too?" Blu inquired while cleaning himself.

"Yeah," Jewel replied, doing the same. "Why?"

"'Cuz I can't remember when I ate last," Blu said.

"We'll get something after," Jewel suggested, finishing her bath. "Whew! Man I feel good!"

Blu glanced over at his mate and watched her glow in the sunlight. Once again, he remembered how much he loved her.

"You ready?" Blu asked.

"Good to go," Jewel replied. They took off together and quickly flew up to Christo.

When they arrived, the Hyacinths, Kipo and his gang, Nico, Pedro, Ivan, and Rafael were standing on the railing overlooking the bodies. Behind them lay a beautiful landscape of Rio. In front of them, a few other birds of the forest were forming in a group a few feet away from the bodies.

"There you guys are!" Nico said playfully. "We were beginning to think you were skipping out on us or something!"

"Lost track of time," Blu replied, landing next to Nico. Jewel landed next to Blu. "Everyone looks really good! I mean clean, that is." He laughed a little.

Nico found himself laughing a little too. "Probably not a good idea to laugh at a funeral," he added. They quickly stopped to avoid attracting attention.

Kepler walked over to their conversation on the railing.

"Tyler," Kepler reached out his wing. "How are you today? You look well."

"I feel great too," Blu replied, shaking Kepler's wing. "Where are all your buddies?"

Kepler leaned in closer. "For that, you'd have to look a little harder."

Blu turned his head towards Christo, but Kepler stopped Blu's head with his wing and moved it back.

"Don't give away their positions," Kepler whispered. "Last night, when I left you with Alberto, I caught a little bit of a conversation between Sanchez and who I believe to be Peter. He's going to be here at the funeral! The guys are out and about, hidden in plain sight. If they see him, they'll get him."

"But we don't even know what he looks like," Blu explained. "He could be any bird! He could be green, or yellow, or red, or every color!"

"Here's something to consider," Kepler replied. "If he was so much like everyone else to the point that he could fit in, don't you think that he would live with everyone else? He doesn't, though. He hides from the world under a bridge! There's a great chance that he is a very unique color, and is extremely skittish, but intelligent."

"So what should we do?" Blu wondered.

"Let's just move on with the funeral," Kepler suggested. "It should almost be seven." He turned around and looked at the sun. He thought for a moment and turned back. "I'm very rusty with my sunrise and sunset charts. I used to know them by heart. That was one of the experiments that I actually liked. But no. I was wrong. We still have quite a bit before seven. Just watch the group of people grow."

For the next half an hour, the group of friends watched as hundreds, or even thousands, or birds gathered at Christo. They stood on railings, on the walkways, and some even flapped their wings in mid-air to catch a good view. This wasn't very good for Newton, Einstein, and Plato. Birds began blocking their strategic views.

Einstein and Plato were positioned on top of the arms of Christo. They stared down through the group of birds, looking for anyone out of the ordinary.

"There are way too many birds here!" Plato complained quietly to Einstein as he tried to peer down into the crowd.

"There is no way that all of these people are relatives of the dead," Einstein suggested. "Either we told too many people about this, or something's up."

Newton was positioned in a similar area that Kepler watched Sanchez and the mysterious figure the night before: just under the railing and out of sight by everyone. He quietly patrolled the outside of the platform, looking for anyone suspicious.

The group was noisy and engaged in conversation. Kepler decided that it was time to begin. He let out a deafening shriek similar to the one he gave the night before. The entire crowd went silent and covered their ears as they stared at Kepler. Kepler cleared his throat and moved forward off of the railing, and onto the ground below next to the bodies.

"I imagine," Kepler started, "that when all of us woke up yesterday morning, no one expected anything like this. No one wanted anything like this. No one could imagine anything like this. Except, the few who committed it, they could have. And they carried it out underneath all of our noses. This is not the first time that this forest has faced this kind of turmoil. But, I'm not here to preach a history lesson today. I'm here to mourn those who were lost in a way they should never have been lost. And now, I stand before you, trying to come up with something that at least remotely attempts to make things better. But I know that nothing will. So I have only one thing to do, and that is carry on with what is planned.

"In front of me here," he pointed at the bodies, "lays a hundred and seven bodies." The crowd rustled a little bit, and some cries could be heard. "In the simplest of ways, they are exactly the way that you knew them. Their eyes, their skin, their feathers, and their faces all remain the same. But the one thing that made them the way that they knew they were, that my friends, was the one thing taken. That thing, was their life. Their personality, their character, their intentions, and their thoughts. That is what has been taken. And when one takes that away from something, one leaves behind something that you don't know. It's sickening. It hurts. It's a terrible thing, and trust me. I know. I lost my father when I was three years old.

"For the short time that I knew him, he was one of the best things in my life. He talked to me, listened to me, taught me, and cared for me. As old as I am, and I'm old, I still remember every little thing that he ever said to me. This, my friends, is the lesson that I am trying that through to you. You remember the good times that you had with whoever it was that you lost. You remember their voice, their actions, and the time you spent together. At the same time, you stand here and see their lifeless body laid out on the cold concrete platform in front of Christo Redentor. This is, for a fact, the worst day of your life. I was too young to realize that the day I lost my father was the worst day of mine. But you're adults. You'll remember this forever.

"So the lesson is clear here. I don't want you to remember your lost friend, mate, brother, sister, father, or mother by what you see here. No. I want you to remember them by the great times that you had with them. This may be the most recent thing, but it doesn't mean you have to hold onto what you saw here. But because of conditions that I cannot accurately explain, I must tell you to remember the kind of people that do this. This was not a battle or an argument gone bad. This was the result of a planned attack on birds that meant no harm whatsoever. But to be frank, in the words of a captured conspirator, he referred to your friends and family as collateral damage."

Saying that produced negative emotions in the crowd. Some complained, some cried, and some stirred where they were standing. The three other Hyacinths watched carefully to spot out anything that gave anyone away.

"Kepler's good," Plato said to Einstein. "He's trying to draw them out by emotional techniques!"

Without warning, a bird in the crowd took off from the balcony and sped away. Split seconds later, Newton took off like a bullet out of a gun and shot off towards the fleeing bird. The crowd couldn't believe what had just happened. Everyone's eyes and pointed wings were at Newton and the other escaping bird. Some yelled things like "There he is!" or "That's one of those bad guys!"

The other bird was fast, but not fast enough to escape the speed of Newton. Within 20 seconds, Newton caught up to the bird and grasped their body with his talons. The bird was a Military Macaw, and was predominantly green with some red in specific areas of the head and rump. Newton said nothing and flew the bird back to Christo.

When Newton arrived back, he smacked the bird down onto the concrete while Plato and Einstein arrived to hold him down and restrain him. Some in the audience moved to try and get a better view of what was happening. Others quickly took off and left. Everyone watched helplessly as other suspicious birds continued to leave as quickly as they could. Kepler jumped down off of the railing and stood over the bird.

"Let me go!" the Military Macaw demanded as he struggled to get free.

"Is that a joke?" Kepler laughed a little. "We've got plenty of things for you, Peter."

The Military Macaw laughed hysterically. The Hyacinths looked at each other, completely dumbfounded.

"You think I'm Peter?" the bird continued to laugh hysterically. "Peter definitely called it, though! You idiots actually fell for it! Haha! You let him walk right out of here while you fools had your backs turned! And I thought you were smart! Wow, are you stupid creatures!"

Kepler was not in the mood for another day of dealing with the enemy. While his friends held him down, Kepler unexpectedly stomped hard on the bird's neck, crushing it. The three other Hyacinths backed up from the bird in surprise as he gasped for air, and slowly died. When he stopped moving, Kepler kicked the lifeless body into line with the other bodies, now strategically lined up on the ground.

"Diego!" Newton cried out in disappointment. "Not only was he our only lead to finding Peter, but you promised that there would be no death!"

"I realize now that you made a mistake in keeping me from killing Sanchez," Kepler replied angrily. "Peter's gonna find him eventually. He'll send more of his goons after innocent people! Even worse, Sanchez'll be back to finish what he started."

"But he can't fly," Newton explained. "How could he get you back?"

"When those poachers come back from wherever they went," Kepler assured him, "they'll fix him up. They definitely have the skills to! It was different back then. I wouldn't've killed them if I had the choice! I was defending myself and my family! And I was defending the three of you." Kepler shed a tear and looked down at the ground. "This has just been way too much on me. I need some time alone. I have personal business to tend to."

Kepler took off and flew away. No one knew for sure where his path was taking him.

"What are we supposed to do without Diego?" Einstein complained again.

"All you've done today was complain," Newton said annoyed. "Just shut up. We'll do this on our own. We don't need him. He's just under a lot of pressure as self-proclaimed leader." He turned to everyone on the railing. "Well, looks like we have a funeral procession to oversee."

**Another lead is dead, and Peter escaped without being seen. Kepler is super upset, so now the other guys have to do this. How will things work out? Check out Chapter 20 when it arrives!**


	20. Chapter 20: Improvisation

Chapter 20

Without Kepler, the Hyacinths lost their best speaker, and their easy way out of a long funeral speech. Newton, however, was ready to take on the challenge.

Einstein and Plato flew back up onto the railing with the rest of the gang. Newton cleared his throat as the crowd settled down and looked back at him.

"I apologize for the behavior of my friend," Newton began. "He's tried so hard to put this together on such short notice. If he were here right now, I'd probably give him a show of gratitude." A pause. "He's a sensitive guy when it comes to death, but to be honest, he's not afraid to deal it. Before we begin today, I just wanted to take the time to inform you all that we are here for all of you behind the scenes." Some talking in the crowd could be slightly heard. "Since last night, we have been on guard, searching for leads on who had caused your friends pain. The one that Diego just dispatched right behind me," He turned and pointed at the recently killed bird, "was a trick."

Some birds sounded confused, but Newton continued. "He is not the leader, but rather he was a distraction for the rest of his clan so they could escape. We knew, from the start, that not everyone among you was a family member or relative to the deceased. They were among you the entire time."

More small discussions could be heard in the crowd regarding their own safety.

"Things like this are the reason why something needs to be done around here." He paused to clear his throat. "Like the human world, there needs to be someone, or a group of someones, that watches over the good people of the community, and protects them from the bad ones. I am not going to tell you how to fly, or where you can go, or what you can do. That's not what we're here for. We are here because we can be. And until we believe that there's nothing to fear anymore, we'll be here." The crowd could be seen smiling and feeling at ease. "We are always around, and if you ever need us for anything, ANYTHING at all, don't hesitate to tell us."

The crowd clapped their wings and cheered with tears in their eyes.

"I think it's time we begin the ceremony," Newton continued. "But, before we begin, I want to share a little something from my days with humans. I believe that it fits well for this occasion. Please bow your heads and close your eyes. Think of your loved one being in a better place, and listen to what I am going to tell you."

The crowd followed suit, and the group of friends on the railing did as well. When everyone's head was bowed, Newton did the same and closed his eyes.

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of Death, I will fear no evil! For thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. Thou preparest a table for me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil. My cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

The audience opened its eyes and raised it heads. They clapped and cheered, and they peered at the bodies.

"Now my friends," Kepler pointed to the first body in line. "Will the family of the first victim please come forward."

There was silence in the crowd. Birds looked at each other until finally, an entire family of different colored birds appeared from the crowd. Some had colors exactly resembling the deceased, while at the same time, there were others that were completely different colors. The deceased was a Blue-and Yellow Macaw, and approaching from the crowd were a mix of other Blue-and-Yellow's and strange orange and yellow ones.

"Whoa," Newton stopped the group of birds from advancing towards the body. "I said that only the family of the deceased should come forward. The rest of you orange guys need to stay back."

"That's by brother!" one of the orange colored birds pleaded.

"That's not possible," Newton replied. "You're not even the same color as him!"

"Ever hear of recessive genes, buddy?" the orange bird continued to reason.

Kepler stopped and thought for a moment. Newton was never the expert on genetics. That expertise lied with Kepler.

"I'm sorry," Newton said putting his wing down. "I'm not an expert on genetics. I'm just trying to run this as smoothly as I can."

"There's no reason to be sorry," the orange bird replied, putting out his wing. "The name's Francisco. These are my parents, my wife Amber, and my sister." Newton shook his wing while he spoke. "My wife and I are Blue-and-Yellow Macaws with a rare recessive gene that alters our pigments to white and a lighter shade of orange. People call us Golden Macaws for easy reference."

"Pleasure to meet you," Newton replied. "I'm terribly sorry for your loss. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask any of us for help. That's what we're here for."

"Thank you," Francisco smiled, walking with his family and wife to his dead brother. He knelt down in front of his brother and put his wing on his brother's chest. The rest of his family did the same. He closed his eyes and muttered a word. Newton's good hearing allowed him to make it out.

"_Ultionem_."

The rest of Francisco's family stood and wept as they looked at their deceased family member. Newton turned to the railing and looked at Kipo.

"Kipo," Newton called. "Come here." Kipo approached and leaned in to listen. "Take the body and place it in the ocean. The ocean is well-suited for an honorable burial."

Kipo, with a glum yet determined look on his face, walked over and picked up the body with his talons. He took off and carried it towards the ocean. Newton put his wing over his eyes in a salute as he stared at the body being carried out to sea. He shed a small tear. The rest of the Hyacinths, along with the rest of the gang on the railing, saluted Kipo and the body as they continued to move towards the sea.

Newton lowered his wing and turned to look at Francisco. The rest of the birds lowered their wings as well. Francisco's head was pointed towards the ground, with his eyes closed. Newton put his wing on Francisco's shoulder and Francisco looked up and opened his eyes. There were a few tears in them.

"You're a very intelligent bird," Newton said to him with a calm voice. "You know Latin. You used the word for revenge."

"I was once from the United States," Francisco replied, looking down to the ground and back up, wiping his tears. "My breeders were into historical readings. They had a whole library of books from different languages. I couldn't help myself. I was eager to learn more." He paused quickly. "My family wanted to be able to survive in the wild once they brought us back to Brazil. My parents wanted us to live a good life here. I met my wife not too long ago. She was born in the wild with the mutation! We're thinking about raising a family, but we're going to wait now until the smoke clears from my brother's tragedy."

"So what does that have to do with revenge?" Newton inquired.

"It doesn't," Francisco continued. "But my brother was one of the most influential people in my life, and I'm not going to stop until I find those responsible. You guys seem to know a lot about the birds who did this, so I decided to come to you to offer my expertise—

"—You wanna help us?" Newton sounded surprised. "Are you sure you wanna get into something like this? We work in the security and protection business. We see blood and guts daily. Can you handle something like that?"

"My breeders were anatomists," Francisco said. "They cut things open around me all the time."

"Let's discuss this later at the reception," Newton concluded. "I want to help the rest of these families out so they can go home and not have to worry about this anymore."

"That's alright by me," Francisco nodded. "Do what you gotta do." He patted Newton on the back and turned to his family. Just then, Kipo was returning from the water. He landed next to Newton.

"Where did you put it?" Newton asked quietly.

"I placed him quietly into the ocean," Kipo whispered back. "Nothing's going to disturb him. He'll rest in peace."

A thought popped into Newton's mind.

"Line your buddies up," Newton advised Kipo. "You guys are gonna do the same thing with the rest of the bodies. Make it inconspicuous, though! Don't just drop all of these bodies in the same area!"

"Got it," Kipo replied, going up to his friends to tell them about what Newton had advised him about. His friends nodded their heads and followed him down onto the walkway in a line.

"We're ready when you are," Kipo announced to Newton. Newton nodded and turned to the crowd.

"Will the family of the next deceased please come up to the front," Newton bellowed. He pointed to a deceased Scarlet Macaw on the ground. The crowd looked at each other and whispered quietly. Finally, a lone Scarlet Macaw approached from the crowd with her head lowered to the ground. Her colors were striking, and Newton became depressed just thinking about her situation. As she reached Newton, she wrapped her wings around him and sobbed. Newton felt terrible, and so he put his wings around her and closed his eyes.

"I'm terribly sorry," Newton said in a quiet tone, trying to comfort her. "Everything's gonna be alright. We're here for you. No one's going to hurt you."

"But they took my babe away from me," the macaw said through her deep sobs and tears. "I…I…I don't know what to do. He was the only thing I had and they took him away from me."

"The least we can do is give your husband a peaceful burial," Newton replied. "If you need anything else, don't be afraid to ask for Lucas."

"Thank you," the macaw smiled and took her wings off of Newton. "The name's Arlene. Thank you for doing this for all of us. I can't imagine how grateful everyone is that you're giving them some sense of closure by doing this." The macaw now known as Arlene walked over to her husband's body and knelt down beside him. She kissed him on the head and stood back up. She broke down into sobs once more as she stood back from the body, and watched it get picked up and carried by one of Kipo's friends. Like with the first body, the Hyacinths raised their wing in a salute, and most of the other birds followed.

"I'm in debt to you now," Arlene said quietly to Newton. Newton turned around, surprised.

"Why's that?" Newton inquired.

"For helping me do what I couldn't," Arlene replied, coming up to Newton and kissing him on the side of the head. Newton was flattered by the overwhelming show of gratitude, and blushed a little. Einstein and Plato giggled a little.

"We are so beating on him for this later!" Einstein chuckled.

"Easy now," Plato replied. "It's not like he's going after her. You know why I know that to be true."

"Yeah, you're right," Einstein figured. "But could The Code be in jeopardy here?"

"Doubtful," Plato pointed. "Look. She's going back to the crowd now. He'll stay true to The Agreement. Trust me."

Rewinding a little to switch the focus to the human world, it was around 6:30 A.M. in the city portion of Rio de Janiero. The beaches were quiet, and few things moved around the beach communities. Inside the comfort of their own home, Linda and Tulio awoke peacefully.

Tulio's eyes opened wide as he gazed at a window covered by a blind. The outside light was very powerful, and had filled the room with light. Tulio stretched his arms high into the air and sat up in bed. Linda rolled over and stretched her arms out to the side.

"Good morning," Linda smiled, showing her warm mood.

Tulio turned to acknowledge her. "Good morning," he replied with a smile as he got up out of bed. "The weather is beautiful this morning! It's going to be a great day to spend on the water! I'll go and make something for breakfast!"

"Take your time!" Linda called to him as he made his way to the kitchen upstairs.

**Author's note: The building that Linda and Tulio live in is comprised of three floors. The first floor is the bookstore. The second floor is their bedrooms and bathroom. The third floor is their kitchen, living room, and dining room. Odd setup, but some people like things a certain way.**

Linda walked into Fernando's room, where he was still sleeping. As she opened his door, he opened his eyes and stretched.

"Good morning, Linda," Fernando smiled, stretching and sitting up.

"Good morning, Fernando," Linda replied with a smile, kissing him on the forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"Like new!" Fernando said excited.

"We figured you could skip school today," Linda explained, "but tomorrow is going to be your big day back!"

"But I don't wanna go to school," Fernando replied, pouting. "I've never really been to school before. I don't know what it's like."

"That's why you're not starting out in a regular school," Linda said smiling and patting Fernando's shoulder. "We've hired a private teacher to catch you up really fast. In just a couple years, you'll be caught up with everyone else! There are other boys that are in your group, too. You'll all get to become best friends and teach each other."

"Are you sure?" Fernando asked to verify.

"I'm very sure," Linda assured him. "But come on, that's tomorrow! We're going out on the boat today for a nice day on the water!"

"I'll get ready!" Fernando jumped out of bed and ran into the bathroom to shower. Linda walked upstairs to the kitchen to see what Tulio was doing.

"I thought you were making breakfast," Linda said just before she got into the kitchen, smelling sandwiches.

"I did," Tulio replied as she entered the room. "It's on the table. I'm making lunch for out on the boat!"

Linda looked at the table and saw an extravagant meal of sausage, eggs, pancakes, and orange juice. She was very surprised.

"How do you know how to cook like that?" Linda inquired as she walked over to the table and sat down.

"When I was in America," Tulio explained while making food, "I stayed at some fancy motel called the Days Inn. They had a huge breakfast with all these things in it! So I modeled it after their breakfast!"

"Well you did a very good job," Linda smiled as she took a bite of the eggs. Tulio soon walked over and joined her at the table. For a few minutes, they ate, and Fernando came up the stairs with swimming trunks and a T-shirt on.

"Ready to go!" Fernando replied. "Whoa! Look at all that food! Did you make all this, Linda?"

"Actually," Linda replied, "this was all Tulio! You can thank him for this!"

"This looks good!" Fernando sat down and tasted the food. "This looks good and tastes good!"

"Don't take too long now," Tulio said to Linda and Fernando. "I want to spend as much time on the water as I can!"

When all three of them finished, Linda and Tulio headed down to the second floor to shower and change. Fernando headed down to the first floor to get some crisp morning air.

**So, the day continues on! I understand that there's little to no action, but life isn't about wars and fights! You have to understand the plot before you can understand the rest of the story! Huge thanks to:**

**Francisco the Golden Macaw**

**Arlene the Scarlet Macaw**

**Thanks again for allowing me to include you in the story! If anyone with an OC (original character) wants to include their OC in the story, please PM me! I'm open to anyone who wants to play a part! Sorry if I don't update as much as you guys want me to. School's picking up again so I have little time to write. PM me with questions or if you just wanna talk! I may not be writing but I'm online all the time!**

**New thing I'm doing: sneak peeks into the next chapter! (since I don't update often) Chapter 21 will include: the start of day on the water, Kepler's whereabouts, and more, if not all, of the funeral procession! **


	21. Chapter 21: Things Are Getting Worse

Chapter 21

It didn't take long for Tulio and Linda to prepare for the day on the water. By 7: 15, their bags were packed, and Tulio and Linda walked downstairs with the bags.

"Where is Fernando?" Tulio inquired while carrying a bag to the first floor. "He didn't tell us where he ran off to."

"Knowing him," Linda replied, "he's probably enjoying the nice morning."

"Would've been nice if he could've helped us!" Tulio complained.

"It's not like we had that many bags," Linda defended.

"Still," Tulio continued to complain.

The two reached the first floor and saw Fernando outside on the sidewalk.

"I told you he was enjoying the outdoors," Linda joked.

"Well next time he could be enjoying the bag carrying," Tulio struggled with the bags. Fernando turned around and noticed his parents coming up to the door, and went over to the door to hold it open.

"Thank you!" Linda said gratefully as she walked through.

"Carry a bag next time," Tulio said as he walked through. Fernando laughed a little.

"We need to walk to the main street if we want to find a taxi," Tulio suggested.

"I'll scout ahead and find one!" Fernando yelled with excitement as he grabbed a bag and ran down the street.

"See?" Linda pointed at Fernando once he was out of earshot. "He grabbed a bag. Happy now?"

"Yes!" Tulio replied trying to get the point across, while at the same time laughing a little. "That's all I asked!"

When they arrived at the street, Fernando had summoned a cab, and the cab was awaiting them on the side of the street.

"Got your cab!" Fernando stated as he helped put the rest of the bags in the trunk.

The three entered the cab, and Tulio told the taxi driver to go to the Conservatory. The driver acknowledged and drove down the road towards the Conservatory.

It is not a short drive from one side of the city to the other. It took 15 minutes of weaving through city traffic to finally get to the Conservatory. Once they arrived, they proceeded to remove their bags from the trunk of the cab and pay the cabbie. The cabbie thanked them and drove back down the road.

"Come on," Tulio pointed in front of him. "The truck and boat are in the back!"

Linda and Fernando followed Tulio to behind the Conservatory building, where they found an SUV and trailer containing a boat. The SUV was at least 15 years of age, but the boat was a virtually brand new medium sized fishing boat. Both the boat and the SUV bore the Conservatory logo.

"New boat," Fernando noticed, "but old truck?"

"That truck was bought with insurance money after my father died," Tulio explained, feeling a little uneasy. "He donated a large portion of his assets to the Conservatory. That truck hasn't been replaced because it was bought a week after my father died. It keeps his memory alive."

"If there's money," Linda said, "why not buy a new one?"

"Like I said," Tulio repeated. "They want to remember my father."

"You can use the truck," Fernando said. "Buy the Conservatory a new one. We could use a new truck at home."

"But we have nowhere to put it," Tulio replied solemnly.

"We'll just have to park it out front," Linda suggested.

"I'll be back at work tomorrow," Tulio closed the conversation. "I'll discuss it with the treasurers and other finance guys. For now, let's get this baby on the water!"

The three threw their bags into the back of the SUV and hopped in. Tulio turned the key, and after a few seconds, the truck finally started. They pulled out of the back lot and drove down the road, headed for the marina.

For those who aren't familiar with the large marina in Rio, it can be easily found by viewing photos of Sugarloaf Mountain from Christo. Near the base of Sugarloaf lies a large dock with massive yachts and other vessels. This is the very marina that Linda, Tulio, and Fernando were headed to. Normally, the marina is very crowded during the day. They had made it early enough to avoid the large crowds.

Tulio pulled the truck and trailer up to the small boat launch and proceeded to back the trailer up into the water. The back wheels of the trailer slid under the crystal clear waves, and the boat was almost completely in the water. Tulio parked the truck and got out. He unlocked the straps that hold the boat in place, and the boat slowly drifted off of the trailer. Tulio got back into the truck, and backed up into the parking lot nearby.

The couple and adopted child made their way out of the truck and grabbed the bags out of the back lift gate.

"So we just get in the boat?" Fernando inquired.

"Don't tell me you've never been on a boat before," Tulio said in disbelief.

"I haven't…" Fernando looked at the ground.

"Well there's a first time for everything," Tulio pronounced with spirit. He got into the boat and placed a key into the ignition. Quickly, the boat started, and the engine revved.

"All aboard the _Cerulean_!" Tulio called as Linda and Fernando boarded the boat. Tulio backed the boat out of the boat launch area and set course to go around Sugarloaf.

"You named it the _Cerulean_?" Fernando was surprised.

"It's got a nice ring to it!" Tulio called back over the loud sound of the engines. "So anyways, the backside of Sugarloaf is a great spot for fishing! My father used to take me there to catch huge fish! We should have some good luck this morning! This is when they feed!"

After about 10 minutes of high speed boating, Tulio finally stopped the boat on the other side of Sugarloaf. He looked up and noticed the towering cliffs and the observation deck at the top.

"Haven't been here in a while," he said as he turned the boat engines off. He walked over to the other side of the boat and grabbed a large fishing pole on the floor of the boat. He then sat down into a lawn chair and cast a line out into the water.

"Here," Tulio picked up another pole and smiled as he looked at Fernando. "Come give it a shot."

Fernando grabbed a chair and pulled it up next to Tulio. He smiled as he grabbed the pole form Tulio's hand and tried to cast it out. It didn't go very far.

"That's okay." Tulio tried to cheer Fernando up by patting him on the back. "Reel it up and give it another shot!"

While Tulio was showing Fernando how to cast the line, Linda tried to relax in the little sun that she could get. With sunglasses on and a comfortable sunbathing chair to lie on, she got comfortable quick.

After a few attempts, Fernando was finally able to get his line out far enough to be near Tulio's spot. He smiled and cheered "Yes!" when it finally made it.

"See?" Tulio congratulated him. "You just have to try a few times. Now we can just sit back and wait."

Linda tried her best to get a good nap while she attempted to sunbathe. After a few minutes, she figured that everything was falling into place for her to enjoy a relaxing time on the water. Her silent serenity was broken, however, in the form of a large splash.

The splash was abrupt, and Linda looked up in a flash to see what had happened. The water was splashing back down where it had been rocketed into the air from contact with a falling object. That object broke its surface tension. Under the water, Linda could see the object that had been dropped, and she noticed that it was returning to the surface. She squinted in the sunlight to see a little better. When the object finally rose to the surface, she jumped up off of the sunbathing chair and screamed.

A few minutes earlier, when Linda had first started sunbathing, Tulio and Fernando had just gotten both lines out into the water. It was only a matter of a minute that Fernando's bobber went under the water.

"You got something!" Tulio quickly leaned forward and pointed enthusiastically to the submerged bobber. Fernando grabbed the pole in excitement.

"Is it pulling?" Tulio inquired.

"It just feels a little heavy," Fernando replied.

"Well," Tulio replied, "reel it in anyways. It's probably some trash, but at least we'll be cleaning out the ocean!"

Fernando quickly reeled in the object. As it moved under the water, Tulio could see multiple colors: red, blue, and yellow.

"What is that?" Tulio said to himself out loud under his breath. As it came out of the water, both of their pairs of eyes widened. Fernando's line had caught onto the deceased body of a Scarlet Macaw. It had a large stab-like wound in its thorax, and its face showed complete agony. Tulio was heartbroken.

"Let me see," Tulio couldn't believe what it was. He took the hook out of the wound and held the bird in his hands. "What happened to you? What could have done this to you?"

As he examined the bird's wound, Linda's deafening scream drew his attention to her, as she was now standing up with her hands over her face. She was now sobbing hysterically. Tulio flew up out of his chair and ran to comfort Linda.

"What's wrong?" Tulio had no idea what was wrong with her. Through her jittering and hysterical tears, she pointed her arm out into the water. Tulio turned and gasped under his breath. In the water was another dead bird. Further away from them, another splash could be heard, and Tulio and Linda looked over to see where it had come from.

"We need to call someone," Tulio said in shock as he walked back over to the boat controls. "I don't understand. How could this have happened? What is wrong with the birds?"

Fernando and Linda sat down in the boat with somber attitudes and slight jitters as Tulio started the boat and sped back around Sugarloaf Mountain. After about 10 minutes, they were nearly all the way around. Out of the blue, a massive explosion rocked the area just around the curve of the mountain. The three flinched when they heard the explosion.

"What is going on?" Linda said after the blast in confusion. "There are dead birds in the ocean and now things are blowing up!"

"Definitely not a normal day in Rio," Tulio replied. He then spoke quietly to himself: "Then again…When is there EVER a normal day here?"

Once they had rounded the curve of the mountain, the site of the explosion came into view. The lower gondola station that took passengers to the top of Sugarloaf was in flames.

"Oh my goodness," Tulio said while looking up at the flames wile piloting the boat. "They said those things would never break."

He pulled the boat up to the boat launch and jumped off. Fernando helped grab things with Linda while Tulio ran to the truck. In no time, he was back with the truck, and backed it up to in front of the boat. He proceeded to get back out and push the boat into the trailer, strapping it in.

"I'm sorry today didn't go so well," Linda said while grabbing things. "I promise you we will do this much more often when we have time."

"At least I gave fishing my best shot!" Fernando replied, grabbing the last of the things. "I'll get better as time goes on."

"That's the spirit!" Linda replied cheerfully as Tulio motioned to get to the truck. They threw the items in the back of the truck and got in. Tulio began driving away from the boat launch and out of the marina.

Sirens could be heard everywhere. Police, firefighters, and ambulances from around the city were converging on the location. Tulio had made it out just in time to avoid getting boxed in by emergency vehicles.

"I can't believe this," Tulio began again as he drove away from the marina. "Those birds did not just drop out of the sky. Something killed them." He smacked his hands off of the steering wheel. "I have to do something!"

"There's nothing you can do," Linda replied, putting her hand on Tulio's shoulder. "Maybe it's best if we don't get involved. The forest solves its own problems, right?

Kepler flew away from Christo in displeasure.

"Underappreciated," Kepler mumbled to himself. "That's the right word. After all I do for them, after all I DID for them, and I get this. Heh, I'll show them. I'll show them that I can strike fast, too. Let's check up on a little buddy of ours."

A few minutes passed before Kepler reached the top of Sugarloaf Mountain. The sun was beaming down on the water, and it was the perfect day for anything. A few people were up early to view the sights. Hiding from plain sight however, a very familiar face was lurking on the other side of the railing, out of view to the onlookers.

Kepler landed on the railing. He began scanning the area just over the railing. He finally came to an area near the gondola drop-off point. As he peered over the railing, he saw a pinkish bird with bloody wings looking down the massive mountain to the valley below. Kepler looked down at who he knew was Sanchez.

"See now why you can't just go around killing people?" Kepler boomed down to Sanchez. Sanchez flinched after being surprised but didn't look up. Kepler took a small rock and threw it at Sanchez, who seemed unaffected. "I know you can hear me, bozo. I didn't rip your ears out, you know."

"Don't you think you've caused me enough pain already?" Sanchez said quietly without moving his head.

"You plan is becoming more and more known to me by the minute," Kepler revealed. "The friends you know can fix you right up. Soon enough, you'll be back to claim your revenge. It's just way too predictable, Eduardo."

"Very good guesses," Sanchez replied quietly, "but at the same time, you stand there realizing that you can do absolutely nothing about it. All of the petty little rules that you follow prevent you from doing anything that you want to do to me right now." Kepler was becoming agitated. "I don't even have to look at you to figure out that I'm building that anger of yours again. You wanna talk predictable? Heh, look at yourself."

"I am quite capable of breaking my rules," Kepler replied with a clenched beak. "You don't know how close you are to losing everything I've let you keep. Anything you still have, I can arrange to take from you in an instant."

"You seem to have your agenda figured out already," Sanchez smirked. "Probably didn't even expect this."

Kepler sensed a trick, but before he could turn around to brace himself, he was struck on the side of the face by a talon and fell over the railing to a small ledge a few feet below. Kepler landed on his head, so he was in a daze, unable to get up. Sanchez stood over him and chuckled evilly. The figure that hit Kepler from the side flew down from the upper ledge and stood over him as well. The figure was blurry, but Kepler could make out the colors.

The figure was of very similar construction to Kepler's size, but its body was of much different tones. Instead of dark blue feathers like Kepler's, the figure's feathers were a lighter, more cerulean color on its back, and a darker, blackish-blue color on its chest area and neck. The back of its neck and head were slightly brighter than its chest, but slightly darker than its back. Its chest had some slight black spotting, but it was just barely noticeable. It had a yellow ring around its eye and a small yellow crest on its lower jaw, virtually the same as Kepler. Kepler's eyesight was just beginning to improve when the mysterious figure spoke.

"Are you sure this is the one that did this to you?" the figure asked Sanchez. Kepler realized that it was the same voice from atop Christo when he was spying on Sanchez speaking to a mysterious figure.

"I know it was him," Sanchez replied. "I can't fly because of him!"

"Now I told you that keep this conversation out of the ears of the enemy," the figure spoke, disappointed. "To be honest, I didn't wanna have to do that. More luggage to carry around, Eduardo. There's only one way down the mountain for you." He looked over at the gondolas making trips up and down the mountain. "In his current state, we just can't deal with him."

Secretly, as they were discussing, Kepler was building the strength to forcefully break away from the two and take off like a rocket back to Christo. Once those words were spoken by the figure, Kepler was ready. Kepler quietly whispered, "I don't have to be your luggage". With the strength he had, he threw his body up onto his feet and beat his wings as quickly as he could to try to get away. He soon realized, however, that he wasn't even flying. The bird now had his wing around Kepler's neck in mid air, a near impossible feat, unless the bird was extremely strong.

"You underestimate my intelligence," the bird smirked. "Now, you're no longer tough luggage to carry around." With one pull of his wing, the bird flung Kepler into the rock face of the mountain, knocking him out on impact. "Now you're just a carry-on."

While this intense endeavor was occurring on top of Sugarloaf, and Tulio, Linda, and Fernando were on their boat, Kipo's friends were making trips with the bodies to the ocean just beyond Sugarloaf. One of them was carrying a body to the area near Tulio's boat, when he noticed Sanchez and his friend dragging a dark blue bird that he recognized was Kepler. Without thinking, he dropped the body he was carrying and swooped down to Kepler's aid. Sanchez's friend noticed the incoming bird and ordered Sanchez to defend. He put Kepler's body aside and went up into the sky to greet the incoming bird.

Kipo's friend wasn't prepared for a fight. He was smashed into head on by Sanchez's partner and crashed down onto the concrete. He was hurt badly and couldn't move much. The bird came back down and stood over him.

"Let you serve as yet another example of why any victory will cost your friends," the bird smirked again. A gondola had just come up to the top of the mountain. He pushed Kipo's friend into the open gondola door and it shut. He grabbed a rock and flew on top of the gondola, opened a door to the gearbox, and shoved the rock in. the rock stripped the gears, and they lost grip on the cable that carries them to the top. The gondola crept off of the platform, and once it was in the open air, began to pick up speed. Kipo's friend laid unconscious inside with no one to help him.

"So what do we do now?" Sanchez asked as they watched from the platform.

The bird thought for a moment and then turned to Sanchez with a content look on his face. "You're as useful to me as a gun with no bullets. Extra weight." With that, Sanchez nodded, closed his eyes, and dropped over the edge of the platform. He plummeted to the water below in silence. The bird walked back over to Kepler's body, picked it up, and took off towards the Costa e Silva Bridge.

The gondola continued to pick up speed towards the bottom terminal with Kipo's friend still inside. With no one to save him, another life was about to be lost.

**So, I hope that giving you insight to the next chapter helps to hold you over until the whole thing comes out! This one took a while. Careful planning and time management had to take place to line the events up as well as they did. That intentional fall by Sanchez is very symbolic. If you think you understand why, feel free to write what you think in the comments. Not to mention, Kepler's been taken hostage! And who is this strangely colored guy? I'm sure it's looking very obvious by now who it is. Again, write what you think!**

**Looking ahead to Chapter 22: the fate of Kipo's friend, the conclusion of the funeral, getting a little help from another new friend, and maybe a little bit of Tulio and company!**


	22. Chapter 22: The Last Straw

Chapter 22

Some of Sanchez's other friends, who were also carrying bodies, saw some of the action going on below. They watched in horror as the gondola sailed down the cable towards the primary platform. There was nothing they could do; their bodies would not allow them to make their way to the gondola, save their friend, and make it out before it collided catastrophically with the primary terminal. They couldn't bear to watch their unconscious friend head for certain death.

From the corner of their eyes, a flying black figure came into the picture. At first, none of them thought anything of it. As the bird came closer to the car, however, a few of them found their jaws dropped in amazement. The black bird sprinted to the gondola and positioned his body into an aerodynamic spear. He shattered the small window on the door and jumped inside. With all of the strength that he could muster, the black bird unlocked the door, grabbed Kipo's friend in his talons, and flew out of the gondola just a few seconds before it made contact with the terminal. The crash was followed by a spectacular explosion that sent a fireball and mushroom cloud high into the air above Rio.

Most of Kipo's friends were now in the air near one another speaking quietly and watching the events unfold. Many of their eyes also followed the black bird as he strained to pull the unconscious Spoonbill to a secure location. Two of them broke off from the group and proceeded over to the black bird to aid him. As they arrived, they did not recognize the bird.

"Let us help you out with him!" one of Kipo's friends suggested to the black bird.

"I would really like that," the black bird replied in a young but manly tone. "He's a hefty one isn't he?" He laughed.

Kipo's friends laughed too as they each grabbed a wing and carried him over to a small ledge on the cliffs above the bay. They set him down and took a break. The black bird stretched his wings and folded them back up onto his sides as he sat down and hung his feet over the edge.

"Your strength is incredible!" one of Kipo's friends commented to the black bird. "How did you manage to do that?"

"I've been through more than you would ever think," the black bird replied. "My clean black feathers hide a rough past."

"We'd love to hear it," the other Spoonbill remarked, "but we have to get back to Christo. We're helping out with a funeral."

The black bird raised an eyebrow and looked surprised. "A funeral?" he asked rhetorically. "Mind if I attend?"

"Come right along," the Spoonbill said. "Just follow us."

They took off from the ledge, holding the unconscious Spoonbill in their toes and talons. They motioned for the rest of the group of Spoonbills to follow them back to Christo to continue the funeral procession. The acknowledged and followed.

Rewinding a little while, the funeral procession was continuing as planned. Families of deceased birds came up to the front to see their relative, Newton said some final words, and one of Kipo's friends picked them up and carried them off towards Sugarloaf while the birds around them saluted.

Soon enough, however, all of the Spoonbills other than Kipo stopped returning, and Newton noticed. At first, his face changed a little as he looked around. It then took a confused shape, and he hopped up to the railing to look over at Sugarloaf. Everyone else at the funeral peered over the railing and tried to get a better look at what Newton was looking at. He stared into the distance and said nothing.

"What do you see?" Kipo broke the silence. A few birds looked at him.

"They stopped coming back," Newton replied quietly. "Where did they go?"

"I don't know," Kipo said while staring off into the distance. "Want me to go check?"

"No," Newton warned. "Stay here. Something might've happened. Wait a moment for a big movement or a sound or something."

After about 20 seconds of silence, the clear sight of a smoke cloud billowed up front near Sugarloaf. There was a stir in the crowd of birds and the gang on the railing looked out onto it. A few seconds later, the loud crackling of an explosion rang past them, and the crowd of birds erupted into panic. Newton's mouth dropped open. Plato and Einstein joined him on the railing.

"That's the lower terminal at Sugarloaf!" Plato yelled. "We have to get over there and help!" He tried to take off but Newton grabbed him and pulled him back down onto the railing.

"Don't go anywhere!" Newton scorned Plato. "That's Diego getting into trouble again! He's brought more problems on himself!"

Plato turned Newton around. "Lucas!" He grabbed Newton and put his face right in front of his. "Once a brother, always a brother. No one left behind. Mess with the best, die like the rest. Semper Fidelis!"

Newton couldn't look into Plato's eyes anymore. He closed them and dropped a few tears as he turned away and opened them again. Faintly, he spoke.

"You protected us from the beginning," Newton spoke under his breath, but could be heard by Plato and Einstein. "You stood up when none of us would. You made everything the way it was then and the way it is now. When our fallen hero comes home, he will embrace your leadership. Protector, superior, and creator."

"The Protector's Hymn," Einstein said. "That's over 30 years old. How did you—

"HEY!" A voice yelled from the sky. Everyone looked up in surprise to see who it was. "You guys need to help us out! We've got some serious problems!"

The group on the concrete walkway made room for the incoming group of birds. They included all of Kipo's friends, the unconscious one, and the black bird. The crowd gasped and stepped back further to give room. From the balcony, Nico and Pedro flew down. Everyone started talking to each other and moving around in the crowd. It was impossible for thoughts to be heard.

Newton needed to take control of the situation. He let out the same shriek that Kepler did earlier. In a second, the entire crowd stopped talking and all eyes were on him.

"Tell us what happened," Newton said to the Spoonbill. "And who is this guy with you? And why is that one unconscious?"

"He was the first one to see what was going on," the Spoonbill pointed to his unconscious friend. "The rest of us got there afterwards. We saw him lying unconscious on top of Sugarloaf next to some other weird colored bird and another Spoonbill! He had something else in his talons that looked like another bird, but we couldn't see."

Newton closed his eyes for a moment and whispered "Diego" to himself. He opened them again and kept listening.

"We took our attention off the other birds because he put our friend here in the gondola and destroyed the cables. The gondola was heading for the terminal! Then the Spoonbill jumps off the upper terminal to the water below. So hope looks lost for our friend, right? This guy here," He points to the black bird, standing there awkwardly, "comes out of nowhere and smashes through the glass and pulls him out with his own strength right before it hits the terminal!" The crowd behind him starts talking and cheering a little. "Man what an explosion! We helped him out and we got everyone back here."

"There's no doubt in my mind that Diego has been kidnapped," Newton turned to the rest of the gang, trying to control his feelings, "and there's no doubt in my mind that I know who the kidnapper is. Guys, Peter is out of his hole. He's got us right where he wants us. He's got our friend and he knows that we're gonna come and get him back."

"So what do you want us to do?" Rafael shouted out.

"Quiet please!" Newton yelled. The crowd went silent again. "Everyone's gonna hate my plan, but it's the only thing we can do. We need to take this slowly and carefully. We need to regroup, map this out, and get in there and take our friend back."

"You want us to fall into his trap?" Nico looked funny at Newton. "You wanna go send more birds to their death? You gotta stop the death, man. We can't lose any more friends." He shed a small tear.

The black bird looked at Nico. "Nico, this guy knows what he's talking about. I'm siding with him on this one."

"You know him?" Newton looked surprised, as well as most of the gang.

"Newton," Nico said, "this is Rico. He's a Black Hawk. We've known each other for a long time. Our parents were good friends." He turned to Rico. "Where have you been, my man? I feel like it's been forever!"

"You know that I went to Cancun to see the surf and do a little relaxing!" Rico said with a little laugh and a smile. "I need a vacation once in a while for all that I do around here."

"It's good to have you on our team, Rico," Newton said putting his wing out. Rico followed and shook wings with Newton. "Will you be staying in town?"

"I live here, amigo!" Rico rang out. "Of course I'll be around. From what I see, something crazy's going down in Rio, and I think I need to get involved. You'll have to fill me in."

"Once we finish the funeral," Newton told him, "we're all heading down to Nico and Pedro's club for food and planning. We could certainly use you on our team."

"I'll be waiting from the background, then," Rico replied. "You do what you need to do." He flew up onto the balcony.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Newton turned and looked around him at everyone. "We will now proceed with the funeral. Will the next family please step forward?"

Tulio, Linda, and Fernando returned to the Conservatory to drop off the boat. When they arrived, Tulio stopped the car and sat for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Linda asked as Tulio put his arms on the steering wheel and placed his head on his arms.

"These past couple days," Tulio replied. "They've just been so stressful. I just feel so busy and I never get any time to spend with my family. And tomorrow, it's back to work again, and Fernando's attending school. Maybe I need to consider quitting my job." He pulled his head up and looked at Linda. "Would you want me to do that?"

"Well," Linda replied, "we really need the money. And it's not like you don't like what you do!"

"I know that I love it," Tulio explained, "but the hours are just so long and tiresome. I go early and I get home really late. Sure the money's pretty good and all, but…" His voice trailed off.

"We'll resolve all of this, okay?" Linda put her hand on Tulio's. "Everything'll work out great!"

"Maybe we should just go home and relax for the rest of the day," Tulio suggested. "Today just seems like that kind of day."

"Sounds good to me!" Fernando cheered in the back seat. Tulio and Linda laughed as Tulio got out and uncoupled the trailer from the truck. He proceeded to get back in and drove the truck down the road and back towards the city.

At roughly 9:30 that morning, the final family stood forward on top of Corcovado Mountain at Christo Redentor to claim their deceased relative. Newton gave final words of condolences to the family as Kipo lightly grasped the body in his talons and carried him off towards the water. Newton saluted the body, as well as Einstein, Plato, Blu, Jewel, Rafael, Ivan, Nico, Pedro, Rico, and Kipo's friends, as well as the group of birds related to the deceased.

In addition to the deceased members of the forest, some of the bodies were unclaimed. They had to have been deceased followers of Peter. They were disposed of during the funeral.

With that, Newton turned and spoke to the crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Newton announced. "I would like to thank you for coming out this morning to this solemn but special occasion. These birds did not die in vain. You have given them a passage to a new world, and their souls are now free. They will watch over us as we avenge their deaths. I invite everyone to a reception at the Samba Club at Ipanema Market. There will be fresh food and plenty of time to share your thoughts. Thank you for your time and patience. Have a wonderful day."

The crowd clapped and cheered. Afterwards, some flew away in many directions, and others stayed and chatted. Einstein and Plato came up to Newton, and Francisco and Arlene came out of the crowd and joined them.

"That was incredible!" Einstein raved. "Diego would be proud!"

"You did a nice job, bud," Plato patted Newton on the shoulder.

"You really did great!" Arlene came up behind and surprised Newton. He turned around.

"Thank you so much!" Newton replied with a smile. "But it's not over yet. We still have to get our friend back. Will you help us?"

"Of course!" Arlene replied. "I'll do anything you need me to."

"Count me in, too," Francisco added. "We'll get your friend back. Peter can't hide forever! We'll avenge every single one of the lost birds, even Peter's followers! They're victims, too. Now then, I'm starving! Let's get something to eat and take our minds off of all this."

"Couldn't agree more," Newton said. With that, Arlene and Francisco took off and headed back towards the samba club. Newton turned around and joined his friends and the rest of the gang. Rico came up to him and congratulated him.

"You sure know your way with words," Rico proclaimed. "I hear your missing friend is the best of them all, but you're not too far away from what I can see!"

"I only do it when I have to," Newton joked. "Your help would mean a lot to all of us."

"This Peter guy isn't going anywhere," Rico assured. "We'll sort all this out. We'll minimize the losses and get your friend back. I won't let you lose him like I lost my wife."

"I'm sorry to hear about that," Newton replied solemnly. "You don't have to share if it's too hard for you."

"We'll have plenty of time later," Rico explained. "I'll let you and your friends go now. I'll see you guys down at the club." He saluted and took off towards the club.

Newton rejoined everyone else on the railing.

"We're going to get set up!" Pedro yelled excitedly. "There's a party going down today!"

"Easy, man," Nico followed up. "Their friends and family just died. Let's keep this one a little less enthusiastic."

"Fine by me," Pedro replied as the two took off and headed back towards the club. Ivan sighed and quickly followed them.

"I must return to my family at home," Rafael spoke out next. "If I can make it to the festivities, I'll be a little late. Enjoy!" Everyone said goodbye and he took off towards home.

"We gotta go help Nico and Pedro with security!" Kipo realized. "Boys, let's get it done."

His friends replied with "Alright" and "Yeah, sounds good" and followed Kipo back to the club.

"Looks like it's just us left now," Blu said as he stood with Jewel and the three remaining Hyacinths.

"All three of us are heading to the club to discuss our next move," Newton replied. "You two are more than welcome to join us."

"We have some quick things to take care of at home," Jewel said. "Won't take us long. Blu should be joining you guys soon enough."

Newton suddenly realized something. "Wait," he spoke quickly, "What happened to Alberto and Felicia? Weren't they supposed to show up for the funeral?"

"Oh yeah," Blu realized. "We'll ask them if we happen to see them. I guess we'll be seeing you guys later, then."

"Until later, my endangered friends!" Newton proclaimed as he took off with Plato and Einstein towards the club. Blu and Jewel were the only two that remained at Christo.

"I almost forgot!" Jewel gasped as her eyes widened. "The kids! They're still at Rafael's! Oh I feel like such a terrible mother!" Jewel took off in a flash and sped back into the forest. Blu took a deep breath and followed close behind.

**Well, after a long hiatus, I have returned! I had to sort out some things and wasn't able to get on the site or write. I apologize for keeping you guys waiting! So, Kepler's got some serious problems. Lucky for him, he has plenty of friends to help him out. **

**Much thanks to Ricardo the Black Hawk for allowing me to use his character. I again would like to thank Arlene the Scarlet Macaw and Francisco the Golden Macaw for using their characters as well. Anyone else with a flagship character that wants to appear in the story, please PM me and we'll talk!**

**Looking ahead to Chapter 23: Kepler's situation, the reception at the club, Blu and Jewel's parenting dilemma, and plenty more from our newest characters!**


	23. Chapter 23: Not My Point to Prove

**After a long hiatus, I return with one of my longest chapters of all time! **

Chapter 23

Kepler came to with a throbbing headache. His eyesight was blurry and dark. The only things he could recognize were the sounds of water crashing up against something, and rolling tires on some kind of platform above him. As his eyesight became a little more effective, a figure appeared to be sitting on the edge of a small concrete pillar just a foot in front of him. In an attempt to move, Kepler found that his feet were tied up and chained to a heavy block. The clinging of the chain alerted the figure, who turned around, stood up, and walked over to him. The figure stuck his face directly in front of Kepler's, and Kepler finally stood face to face with the mastermind behind it all.

His face portrayed him as an angry and cocky, yet intelligent individual, with a perfectly clean complexion. He was not someone who would be stereotyped as a troublemaker. Kepler made a surprised face as he stared at his kidnapper from just inches away.

"I know that's not comfortable," the bird remarked, backing up and turning away, "but the Geneva Convention doesn't define this as 'cruel and unusual punishment'. I hope your friends don't follow the Western custom of dealing with terrorism. That whole 'we don't negotiate with terrorists' thing doesn't work with me. I will get what I want or they will face the consequences. That sounds fair, doesn't it?"

Kepler lay there in silence. He considered his next move, but realized that the only way out of this was to talk to his kidnapper. Without even being sure he had the right man, Kepler assumed and spoke.

"Peter," Kepler replied quietly with a crackled and raspy voice.

The bird stopped and turned around, giving a surprised look on his face. His eyes widened slightly and one brow extended higher than the other.

"Yeah," Kepler said again. "Now I've got your attention. Didn't see that coming, did you Peter? You've played your plan almost perfectly the entire way through. You got moles in the group of friends in the sanctuary, you played some tricks, you got a group of followers going, and you struck at the opportune time. They were all innocent and defenseless, and you sent your guys in there to rip them up like a lion would rip up a puppy. You sick minded freak."

"You shut up!" Peter raged. He charged over to Kepler and kicked him in the stomach. Kepler coughed up a little blood. "You think everything went right? You think I made it my intention to lay waste to the forest? You think I tried to blow up Sugarloaf and put humans at risk? Ugh, you don't understand anything! I came to that funeral this morning because I couldn't believe that my followers had the nerve to kill innocent people. I couldn't live with myself!" He turned away as he choked up a little, but quickly turned back around.

"Why would you run from us if you meant no harm to us?" Kepler tried to understand. His eyesight was now perfect again, but his head still hurt.

"Your mob would lynch me if they got their wings on me!" Peter replied. His face and voice showed desperation and anxiety. "That's what war does to animals. Savages turn normal beings into savages!" His face returned to a serious look, as well as his voice. He took a deep breath. "I told myself from the beginning that if things went south, I would have to suffer the consequences and act accordingly. I am obligated to uphold my promise to myself for the good of everyone."

"Are you bipolar or somethin'?" Kepler asked, confused. Then, he realized. "Wait. I know why you're doing this. I've read about your kind before. You're not even supposed to exist. You're whole species was reportedly wiped out—

"—tell me something I don't already know," Peter interrupted. "If you think you've got it all figured out, I want you to stop for a moment and realize how I feel."

Kepler stared off into nowhere and imagined being Peter. _No one left. Alone. Sad. Despair. No will to live._ He came back to reality.

"How did that feel?" Peter asked rhetorically. "Probably not very good. To know that you're the last of your kind is its own way of saying that you're not cut out to live in this world anymore. I was once owned by a human. I was kept secret from the world for my entire life. I read his books, I read his notes, and I watched his experiments. The man was no fool. He knew how intelligent I was. He knew what I was capable of. So he took advantage of that and taught me all there was to know about everything. History, mathematics, language. Though I would never speak to him, he knew that I was capable of learning. One thing bugged me through my entire life, however. Every other bird in the forest was flying around with someone else. Whenever I saw them, I put on a disappointed face, and my owner would look at me and share that same kind of look. Once, he solemnly said to me, 'If I could give you more, I would. But nature took everything away from you'. I did research, of course. When you finally find out who you really are, you start to understand the world a little better."

"_Anodorhynchus Glaucus_," Kepler answered in unison. "The Glaucous Macaw. I've read so much about you. You're supposed to be extinct—

"—and I soon will be," Peter interrupted. "I have some called congestive heart failure. I've been slowly dying for years. You see, when a species becomes endangered, there really isn't a major concern. It's put in place as a cushion; it's to give the species an opportunity to recover. My species was never given that cushion because it became endangered at a time where the human population lacked a general concern for the prosperity of nature. Seventy years ago, even a hundred years ago, my family was the last family of Glaucous Macaws left in the forest. Now, as uncivilized animals, we had no idea what the consequences of such close breeding would be."

"Defects," Kepler added solemnly.

"They weren't bad in the beginning," Peter continued. "Maybe a twitch or something. Normal issues. By the time they got to my generation, well, 1 out of 3 offspring weren't hatching. My parents couldn't yield a daughter, and my mother died before they could have one. All three of my brothers had congestive heart failure. They all died before they were 10. I was the fortunate one. I promised my family that I would stay alive as long as I could as the last surviving member of my species."

"What made you wish all this terror on these innocent birds?" Kepler inquired.

"With no one left but me," Peter added, "there can be no repercussions placed on anyone for the crimes committed against the avian community of Rio. The origin of my plan, however, will stay hidden for the duration of my lifespan."

"And why would that be?" Kepler pressed on.

Peter turned around and looked at Kepler. "Well that would ruin the grand picture of things, now wouldn't it?" He smirked evilly, followed by a low and booming evil chuckle. Kepler's eyes widened and looked away. Peter walked over and raised a claw up to Kepler's neck.

"You know why I like being a Glaucous?" Peter asked rhetorically. "My talons are like razor blades." He examined his own talon. "As comfortable as I am sharing my life story with you, the plan will continue to stay on course for the duration of its existence. I'm sorry. It's really nothing against you. It's nothing against any individual in the entire forest. Everything and everyone as a whole will suffer. I made a critical error in finding weak-minded fools to help run my show, but they were the only things I could acquire without force. I've anticipated your friends' entire game plan. They will come to get you back. Whether it be now, or later, they will come. My friends can blend in very well, and there are plenty more on standby. Please understand, this is a battle that you're not going to win." He chuckled evilly once more and removed the talon from Kepler's neck as he walked away to the other side of the platform.

"It doesn't have to be this way!" Kepler yelled out. Peter turned around and looked back. "I know some of the best doctors and specialists out there. They can save your life! They can give you years more of happiness and prosperity! You don't have to kill innocent birds to prove that you hate the ones that have it better than you! You don't need to do this!"

Peter paused for a moment. "True," he replied with a glimmer of sadness in his eye. Kepler knew that he was thinking about saving his life. "But unknown to you or any of your friends, it isn't my point to prove."

The crowd gathered at the samba club as the birds from the funeral piled in to enjoy food, music, and conversations with friends. Luiz and Kipo's gang kept watch, Nico and Pedro prepared a music playlist, Kipo worked on some light fixtures, and Ivan prepared drinks for the many eager customers. These customers included the new friends from the funeral: Arlene, Francisco, and Rico.

"I'll tell ya," Francisco remarked, looking around. "This place is really something. The fact that you guys built this place is mind-blowing. All the time you put into it! You must be very proud with the turnout."

"I arrived in the city about two weeks ago," Ivan explained. "This place was destroyed by a group of malicious monkeys about a month ago during a scuffle with some birds. The dark blue guy you saw at the funeral? Yeah, he showed up the day before. The guy's from America. His owner brought him to hook up with a girl. They're the only ones left of their species. Well, them and their kids, of course. But we only started rebuilding right after I showed up. I got introduced to everyone, and they didn't seem very eager to open the place back up. I told them that with my help, we could get it done very quickly, and that we could make it look better than it ever did."

"Guess you were right," Arlene said, finishing her drink. "When did it reopen?"

"Last night," Ivan replied, refilling her drink. "If it weren't for some interruptions involving Peter's men, it would have been a flawless opening night."

"When did this guy first become a problem?" Rico asked. "You make it sound like he's been badgering you for a while."

Ivan told the three the entire story from the previous day. Everything from when Blu stormed into the bar, through the course of the night, and ending with getting sleep for the funeral. This story took about 10 minutes.

"It's a shame that these kinds of things happen," Rico said solemnly after Ivan finished, looking down at his drink. "I know what it feels like to lose loved ones and thirst for revenge." His eyes closed and watered a little.

Ivan, Arlene, and Francisco looked at Rico with disbelieving eyes. They prepared to hear a story that they would not soon forget.

"A few years ago," Rico began, "Carnival had engulfed the city. Its yearly ritual of lights, colors, and dances had commenced once more. Little would I know that it would be the most magical Carnival of my life. My friends and I sat atop the Sambadrome as the glorious floats swirled by, shaded in beautiful greens and yellows, reds and blues, and every other color imaginable. It was yet another Carnival that I would have to spend alone. I wasn't really active in the search for a lifetime companion. It wasn't important enough to me to devote any of my time or resources to chase a dream like that. My friends were enough for me. But as I said, this Carnival would be magical.

"As I sat with my friends on the rooftop, a light glared into the peripherals of my right side. In a normal reaction, I turned and watched a helicopter fly slowly over the parade below. The helicopter's light, however, shined on something I will never forget. A black silhouette flew in its light, flying with such beauty, doing flips and cartwheels in the air. My friends peered at me as I was staring, a uniquely curious face upon me. My friends said nothing to take my concentration off of what I was looking at. They knew that whatever it was, I had it in my sights.

"The figure came to rest atop the opposite side of the Sambadrome. It remained there for a few minutes, and I noticed that no one was with it. With my curiosity leading me, I left my friends and glided to the other side, far above the parade floats and dancers. As I landed on the other rooftop, I came face to face with the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. She was as black as I was, her bright blue eyes gleaming from the lights of the parade. Her perfect body and unforgettable face will never leave my mind. She looked at me funny at first, blushed a little, and turned away from me.

"I didn't know what to do at first. I had never been this close to a female of my kind before, nor had I ever seen a female of my kind as uniquely beautiful as she was. My mind was scattered and my heart raced. I didn't want to give up a good opportunity. I said the first thing that came to my mind. 'Why are you here all alone?' I asked her. 'Are you alright?'

"'I'm fine,' she replied. 'I just came to see the parade.'

"I looked at her funny because she certainly wasn't acting normal at all. She was hiding something. So I go over and sit down next to her. 'There's something you're not telling me. Please, I can help you. I'm here for you. My name's Rico.'

"But she got a little defensive. 'What would you know about me?' she said in a jerk kind of tone. 'You have no idea who I even am.'

"I don't have to know you to see that there's a problem,' I replied, keeping my voice down. 'All I want to do is make sure you're alright. That's all. I don't want any trouble.' Disappointed and a little hurt, I turned and began to take off. Right before I did, however, I heard a 'Wait!' behind me. I stopped beating my wings and I looked back at the girl. There was a tear in her eye.

"'I shouldn't have treated you like that,' she said, almost crying. 'That wasn't fair on you. My name's Christina. I didn't mean to do that, it's just that, well, I'm a little frustrated.'

"I hugged her in sympathy and tried to calm her down. 'It's alright,' I said a few times. 'Do you need to talk about it?' And boy did she wanna talk about it!"

"What did she say?" Francisco asked.

"She and I sat down and started talking about relationships," Rico replied. "She told me that her boyfriend dumped her because she wasn't good enough for him. I told her that if I had a girlfriend like her, she would be all I ever needed. Man did I make her cry tears of beauty. She just looked into my eyes, and I looked into hers, and we knew we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together."

The three others listening in had bright smiles on their faces. But still, they realized that if Rico had brought up a story like this, it probably would take a tragic turn.

"So our lives were set," Rico pressed on. "We were going to be together for as long as we lived. We promised each other every day that there would never be anyone better for us than each other. We made it certain that we would soon have a glorious wedding with all of our friends and family by our sides. But for the moment, that was the least of our worries. A few years ago, this place wasn't near as stable as it was now. Before most of the conservation programs started in Rio, resources were getting harder and harder to come by. Birds resorted to less honorable tactics to obtain their basic needs. We were mourning the dead faster than we thought possible. But they always say that it's never that bad until it happens to you.

"Often, Christina and I chose to walk places to enjoy the forest a little more. Despite warnings from others not to, we didn't pay much attention. At least until we came face to face with assailants. It was like any other day of walking home from the city. I held her wing as we walked, and all sounded calm and peaceful in the forest. Up ahead, there was a bird standing in the pathway. I called out to him, 'Sir? Are you alright?', but he neglected to answer. He stared off into the distance. I told Christina to hold my wing a little harder as we got closer, and I prepared to walk by him. As I got closer to him, he suddenly turned around and looked at me. He was your average macaw, nothing special.

"He responded, 'Hi there! Sorry I didn't reply, I was just observing the forest. I'm new to town and I was getting acquainted. The name's Robert.' He held his wing out to me, and I gladly shook it. I was completely unaware of his intentions. Out from behind Christina and I, two more macaws emerged from some thick brush. They blocked the other direction of the pathway.

"I looked at Robert with disbelieving eyes. 'Is there a problem?' I asked him.

"'Well,' Robert added, 'it would appear that the problem is not ours, but rather yours. You see, maybe the crisis hasn't affected you two yet. I feel that you're going to get very acquainted with what struggling to survive really feels like.' He swiftly punched me in the stomach and dropped to my knees. Christina coward in fear and held onto me as the three birds circled us. I quickly thought of what to do.

"'Meet my friends Tony and Frank,' Robert continued. 'They will be joining us today.' His friends snickered as they insulted us with 'How's your day?' and 'Need any help?' Frank was blue and yellow, and Tony was a golden kinda color, like Francisco. Little did they know that I was trained. I bore a small sharp piece of metal at my side at all times, but I feared that pulling it out may sign my death warrant. I thought that may be the worst mistake I could make. But that was because I thought too highly of bandits.

"In a flash, I tripped Robert, whipped out my blade, and sliced one of his wings. I kicked him back, and he examined the bleeding wound. I was now in rage to protect the one I loved. I grabbed him by the throat and wrestled with him vigorously. I soon gained the upper hand and thrust my blade into the center of his chest. He stopped moving in an instant. Not finished, I glared back at the other two, who were taking off as fast as they could. But they are not birds of prey like I am. I could outrun them any day. They split up, so I could only go after one of them. Before he even knew what had hit him, I grabbed the blue and yellow one from behind and I found both of us plummeting to the ground. I grabbed him and held him under me as I braced for impact.

"We hit the ground with enough force to end him then and there. The shock threw me off and sent me tumbling a few times before I came to a stop. I slowly got up, knowing that the ordeal was finally over. I was being overcome with joy and confidence as I walked back to the spot where it began. I started yelling 'It's over babe!' and 'We're okay!', but I wasn't getting any replies. As I neared the area where I started…"

Rico's voice trailed off as he became choked up. Arlene put a wing around him, trying to comfort him, but he pressed on with the story through his cries.

"I don't… exactly… remember much," Rico tried to spit out through tears. "The moment…I saw her…laying on the ground…something inside me took over." He pulled himself together and continued. "I ran over to her as fast as I possibly could muster. I partially picked her up and held her near my chest as I mindlessly said 'Christina? Christina?' over and over again. Her eyes were wide open and stared off into unknown space. A deep slice on her neck showed the place where she bled out. Her jaw was dropped open, frozen in time forever. I would have never imagined that anyone, ANYONE, would murder an innocent, defenseless female in cold blood. I asked myself this question so many times, it's been engrained in my mind. The forest community buried her the very next day. I tried for years to forget about it, but that doesn't work. You can't forget about the girl that you thought was perfect for you."

"It's alright," Arlene comforted him. "I'm so sorry that it had to happen to you like that."

Francisco was speechless. His jaw was dropped and his eyes stared at Rico. Rico looked at him and didn't quite understand.

"You alright?" Rico asked Francisco.

Francisco said nothing.

"Did you have a little too much to drink?" Ivan noticed Francisco's unusual stare.

Again, Francisco said nothing. After a few more seconds passed, Francisco's eyes rolled to the side and he fell off of his chair and right onto the floor with a loud thump. This attracted the attention of most of the people at the club.

"Oh my god!" Arlene yelled as she dove to the ground to attend to Francisco. Ivan hopped the bar and Rico looked extremely surprised at what had happened. Just a few seconds later, the front door flew open, and in came none other than Blu.

"Hey everybody!" Blu yelled excitedly as he walked in. "How's everything?"

Back when the group of birds first headed to the club after the funeral, Blu tried as hard as he could to catch up to Jewel, but his efforts were in vain. She beat him to Rafael's tree by about 30 seconds. By the time Blu arrived, Jewel was being trampled by her children.

"MOMMY!" the three yelled as they jumped on top of their mother. Eva, Rafael, and their children enjoyed watching the reunion, but as Blu landed in the tree, Eva shared a displeasured glare with Blu. Blu tried not to look, partially realizing, yet confused at the same time.

"Oh my babies," Jewel said in the same voice she made when she first ran into Rafael's children. "Oh I've missed you guys so much!"

"We missed you too, mommy!" the three said in unison.

"I can't thank you enough for watching over them for me," Jewel got up and looked at Eva. "I hope they weren't a problem."

"Of course not," Eva replied smiling. "They are such a fun trio of little kiddos! I wish mine were as well behaved as yours!"

Jewel laughed a little. "Well thank you. We try our best to give them everything we can. Ugh, I can't believe we almost forgot to get them."

"Mother's intuition!" Eva exclaimed. "So where is everyone off to now?"

"I plan on heading home to keep the little ones happy," Jewel replied, stroking Bruno's feathers. "Blu needs to get back down to the club to help out. One of our new friends was kidnapped. I'm sure they'll be needing that big old brain of his."

"He doesn't need to go anywhere," Eva whispered quietly, glancing over at Blu, who was sitting with his kids. "Now that he's a father, he should always be spending time with his family."

Jewel looked at Eva a little funny. "He spends plenty of time with his family! Even I agree, we need a little independence and some space sometimes."

"Family needs to be the number one priority for every man," Eva proclaimed. "That's why Rafael is around all the time. He makes us feel better and he keeps us safe."

"Whether you realize it or not," Jewel got defensive, "I wouldn't really call this place 'safe' at the moment. Everyone's trying as hard as they can to make everything better. Blu and Rafael are helping out because they care about us. They want us to be safe. They're helping out because family is their number one priority. Let them do what they need to."

Eva thought for a moment. "Fine. But just remember. He's all you have. It's not like he's replaceable. I wouldn't replace Rafael for anyone if he was gone. Life is short, hon. Cherish every moment you have with him, because you won't get it back. And don't tell me how to run my family. You run yours, I'll run mine."

Jewel looked confused. She didn't really understand why Eva was being so protective of her family. Rafael came over and came in between them.

"Ladies," Rafael tried to calm both of them down. "What's the problem? You guys need to relax."

Blu got up off the floor and joined everyone else. His kids stood behind him, and Rafael's children stood behind him.

"What's wrong?" Blu promptly asked as he joined the huddle.

"Oh nothing," Jewel replied, giving a slightly displeasured look to Eva. "Us ladies were just having a little chat. But I think that it's time we headed out. Thank you so much again for watching the kids for us!"

"Don't worry about it," Rafael replied happily. Eva stood there, not very happy. "Our family is your family!"

"See ya later!" Blu replied back as he took off with Jewel and their children.

Once Blu and Jewel left, Rafael looked at Eva.

"What did you say to her?" Rafael inquired. "She looked like a pretty unhappy amigo if you ask me."

"None of your business," Eva replied, walking over to her children. "If it was relative to you, I would gladly let you know."

Rafael looked down, disappointed. "Alright," he replied glumly. He sat down in the corner of his tree.

Once they got far enough away to speak, Blu spoke to Jewel.

"What happened back there?" Blu inquired as they flew.

"It's just Eva," Jewel shook her head a little, trying to forget that it happened. "She keeps Rafael locked tight like he's in a cage! She's gotta be crazy. I don't know how he married her! Ugh!"

"Just forget about it," Blu tried to comfort her. "I used to watch these shows called Dr. Phil and Jerry Springer, and these guys used to help people let go of their anger. You just gotta shake it off and forget."

Jewel exhaled heavily and closed her eyes for a moment. "Alright. I think I'm good to go."

They arrived back at the tree. The kids flew in first, followed by Blu and Jewel.

"You know," Blu continued, "last night, when I got up outta bed, I stood in the doorway here. Some kinda weird memories flashed through my mind, like I was here before."

"Well of course you've been here before," Jewel said, tending to the kids. "You live here, smarty."

"No no no," Blu corrected her. "I mean before I even met you. Before everything…" His voice trailed off as memories came back again. _Morning. Chirping. Music. So much dancing._ "Ugh, it comes back and then it goes away before I can put it together!"

Jewel came up behind him and put her wings around his back. "That's just because you've got so much in that big brain of yours, love hawk."

"And you just can't stop calling me that, hot wings," Blu smirked back. He turned his head and they shared a quick kiss.

"Ewww," their three kids said in unison.

They looked back, sort of embarrassed. "What?" Jewel joked. "We're married. Give us a break!" Their kids giggled.

"I need to lay down for a little while," Blu announced. "I'll head back down to the club after a nice little nap." He sat up against the wall of their home. Jewel sat down next to him, and their kids came as well.

"Maybe about 20 minutes…" Blu slowly started dozing off with his wife and kids sitting next to him.

About 20 minutes later, something internal cast Blu out of his nap, and he quickly got up, full of energy, and took off, leaving his kids and wife behind, who had dozed off, as well. Blu casually flew to the club, and landed, seeing Kipo's friends and Luiz.

"My man, Blu," Luiz greeted him as he landed. "How you been, bud?"

"Oh, yanno," Blu replied. "Getting the goods." He winked at Luiz.

"Come on man!" Luiz looked weird at the thought. "That's way too vivid for me, bro! Gimme a break!"

Blu pranced to the door and flung it open, again prancing inside. Once he entered, he yelled out, "Hey everybody! How's everything?" before looking to his right and noticing Francisco on the floor, surrounded by Arlene, Rico, and Ivan.

**Oh shoot! What a chapter! That's quite a long one if you ask me! So, Peter's a Glaucous Macaw, the last of his kind, but he doesn't seem like he's gonna give up anytime soon! Meanwhile, Rico gives a vivid story of losing the one he loves, and Francisco drops over for seemingly no reason! What could be the problem? And how about that little scuffle between Jewel and Eva?** **How long will they be at odds? Thanks to everyone for waiting for so long, and thanks again to all the authors who gave me their characters. They're fitting in pretty well!**

**Looking ahead to Chapter 23: Francisco's little issue resolved, Alberto and Felicia's whereabouts, more from our non-feathered friends, and preparation for getting Kepler back!**


End file.
